New Mercury Phantom in Production

(2017-08-04) Gammex, Sun Nuclear Corporation has licensed the latest Mercury 4.0 Phantom that has been designed by Dr. Ehsan Samei (Radiology).  The new phantom concept for automatic exposure control was created to meet next generation computed tomography (CT) quality control (QA) needs, such as advanced image quality assessment techniques, including task-based metrology; performance evaluation of iterative reconstruction techniques; performance and effectiveness of automatic tube current modulation techniques.

Best in Physics Award Winners

(2017-08-04) Congratulations to Leith Rankine (PhD student) and James Spencer (MS 2017) for being awarded BEST IN PHYSICS at the AAPM 2017 Annual Meeting, scoring highest in the abstract review process and judged by the Scientific Program Directors to reflect the highest level of scientific quality and innovation.

Leith Rankine and his colleagues used a novel Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) technique to measure and compare spatial distributions of lung ventilation and gas exchange in humans. Read abstract here.

James Spencer and his colleagues show the first comparisons of fresh and formalin-fixed specimens to pathologist-assessed H&E histology to detect breast cancer through diffraction imaging. The results exhibit the coherent-scatter diffraction imaging system’s ability to distinguish and identify cancerous tissue using principles of x-ray diffraction. Read abstract here.

GE to License RAILabs Technology

(2017-08-04) GE Healthcare has licensed Computed Tomography (CT) organ dosimetry technology developed at Duke University. The development of the tool was led by Dr. W. Paul Segars and Dr. Ehsan Samei (Radiology). The technology will be incorporated into an organ dose module within GE’s DoseWatchTM, a digital informatics solution that automatically collects, monitors, and reports on radiation dose indices for diagnostic imaging exams. DoseWatch is used by healthcare providers around the world to reduce variation in practice, help ensure patient safety, and drive compliance with government regulations and accreditation requirements. The new tool will provide the CT study acquisition information for the organ dose calculation, as well as the machine-learning technology to accurately match a patient with his or her electronic counterpart. According to GE Sr. Medical Physicist, Dr. David Miller, “This is a big step towards accurate, personalized radiation dose for the CT patient. Doing organ dose right requires precise modeling of both the patient and the radiation field. The combination of GE and Duke technology will bring significant improvements in patient modeling, account for tube current modulation, and provide an estimation of dose to tissues outside the field of view.“

Health Physics Grant Recipients

(2017-07-21) Aaron Smith (MS'17), Bria Moore (PhD'20), Steven Hyatt (MS'18), and Justin Raudabaugh (PhD'23) were honored with Health Physics Society Travel Grants at the 2017 Annual Health Physics Meeting that was held on July 09 – 13, in Raleigh, NC.  Two papers were presented by Bria Moore and one paper by Aaron Smith.

B. Moore, M. Belley, M. Therien, B. Langloss, T. Yoshizumi. Performance Characteristics of Novel Nano-particle based Detector System.

B. Moore, J. Chino, M. Therien, T. Yoshizumi . Clinical Trial in External Beam Radiation Therapy using Nano-particle detector.

A. Smith, G. Nguyen, C. Lowry, T. Yoshizumi. Effects of High Volume MOSFET Dosimetry in Pediatric CT.

From left to right: Steven Hyatt (MS student), Bria Moore (PhD candidate) Justin Raudabaugh (PhD student), K. Roland Womack (MS 2015), Aaron Smith (MS 2017), Terry Yoshizumi, Chu Wang (PhD 2016), and Sue Kurgatt.

Best Medical/AAPM Fellowship 2017

(2017-07-21) James Spencer (MS'17/DI Resident) and Chunhao Wang (PhD'16/RT Resident) have been awarded the Best Medical/AAPM Fellowship 2017, representing two out of five recipients of the fellowship. James Spencer is being awarded for his abstract titled: “BEST IN PHYSICS (IMAGING): X-Ray Diffraction Spectral Imaging for Breast Cancer Assessment”, and Chuhao Wang for his latest abstracts on MR-Guided Radiation Oncology Application.