Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and spectroscopy course

Course dates

Unfortunately, for reasons beyond our control, we have had to cancel the MR course for October 2025. We intend to run the course as normal in 2026 so please check back again soon for the new course dates.

Venue

The Institute of Cancer Research and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, Downs Road, Sutton, Surrey, UK.

Overview

This course is organised by the Joint Department of Physics of The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust and The Institute of Cancer Research, London.

The course has been running at the current venue since 1998. It gives an introduction to methods and applications of biomedical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and spectroscopy, assuming no prior knowledge of the principles of magnetic resonance.

The course is intended to be useful both for NHS physicists who deal with MRI in a clinical setting, and for scientists (such as postdocs and PhD students new to the field) performing research in the field of in vivo NMR. It includes the opportunity to virtually observe measurements demonstrated on one of the Siemens 1.5T MR systems, installed at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust. A provisional lecture list is available below.

The course assumes some familiarity with general principles of physics, but no specific knowledge of magnetic resonance.

Group tutorials are included to give students the opportunity to discuss the material in small groups, and to perform simple exercises to reinforce and extend the teaching of the formal lectures.

The course begins at 9.30am on Monday 13 October 2025, and finishes late afternoon on Wednesday 15 October 2025. One-and-a-half-hour group demonstrations may be included as part of the course on the Monday or Tuesday evenings.

This is a CPD course approved by IPEM.

Provisional lecture list

Basis of NMR
Relaxation Parameters and Spin Echoes
Magnetic Field Gradients, Slice Selection and Frequency Encoding
Basic Imaging Sequences: Spin-echo and Gradient Echo
2D FT Imaging, k-space
Hardware - RF Requirements and RF Coils
Safety Considerations
Hardware - Magnets, Gradients and Eddy Currents
Image Contrast, Resolution and Factors Affecting Signal-to-Noise
MRI in Practice
MRI in Radiotherapy Planning
K-space trajectories
Quantitative imaging
Acceleration of MR sequences
Diffusion MRI
Introduction to in vivo MR Spectroscopy
MR Spectroscopy Acquisition and Analysis
MRI for Clinical Drug Development
Flow and MR Angiography
Functional Imaging Methods
Clinical examples of MRI

Most lectures will be 45 minutes in duration.

Provisional list of lecturers

Dr M Blackledge – ICR and RMH, Sutton
Dr G Charles-Edwards – Guy's and St Thomas Hospitals, London and ICR
Dr K De Paepe – Cambridge
Dr S Doran – ICR and RMH, Sutton
Dr M Graves – Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge
Dr E Kousi – ICR and RMH, Sutton
Dr P Murphy – The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson
Dr M Orton - RMH and ICR, Sutton
Dr GS Payne – ICR and RMH, Sutton
Dr M Rata – ICR and RMH, Sutton
Dr M Schmidt – ICR and RMH, Sutton
Professor G Barker – Kings College, London
Dr J Winfield – RMH and ICR, Sutton

Registration & Course fees

Online Registration Form

Downloadable Registration Form (PDF)

All current course registration fees are given on our registration form.

The cost includes lunches and light refreshments. Lecture notes and a certificate of attendance are provided.

You will be allocated a place on receipt of a completed registration form and a valid quoted payment reference/purchase order or completed bank transfer/online payment. We are unable to accept provisional bookings.

The number of participants is limited, so early booking is advised. Applications from outside the UK are welcome.

Closing date for registrations - TBC