Department of Radiotherapy

The main research theme of the Department of Radiotherapy is the development and application of conformal radiotherapy techniques. This method of external beam radiation requires research relating to definition of target volumes, quantification of benefits from refined treatment planning methods, implementation and assessment of radiation beam delivery techniques, and careful quality assurance to ensure the safety of new techniques in a clinical context. 

Our research aims to apply conformal radiotherapy in selected situations to optimise techniques and evaluate the benefit of these approaches to the health service.

Scientific Overview

Most clinical radiotherapy research is described under the individual Clinical Units in the research themes Radiotherapy and Cancer Therapeutics. The focus of the research programme in the Department of Radiotherapy is on novel techniques of conformal radiotherapy and intensity modulation (jointly with the Joint Department of Physics and supported by a programme grant from Cancer Research UK). The more precise delivery of radiotherapy may lead either to reduction of radiation side effects or dose escalation to increase tumour control. The research programme was reviewed at a site visit during 2003 and scored as 'Forefront', indicating that both previous research and future proposals were regarded as internationally competitive. 

The Department is well equipped to continue research on technical advances in radiotherapy, with installation of a computed tomography (CT) simulator and major expansion of the complement of modern linear accelerators, which include cone-beam CT verification on the treatment couches.

Present laboratory research work is on the biology of normal tissue reactions to radiotherapy. Cancer patients differ widely in their tolerance of radiation therapy in respect of radiation damage to normal tissues, with a small minority of patients suffering a significant degree of damage. The management of these patients is clearly suboptimal and, moreover, it is the risk of treatment complications that limits the dose of radiotherapy for the whole patient group. The aim of the research is to improve our understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved.