Profile

I have recently started a new job in Leeds after working in London for 7 years.

I work as a Medical Physicist in Leeds Teaching Hospitals and usually work 9am to 5.30pm Monday to Friday.

In Radiotherapy radiation, in the form of high energy X-Rays, is used to treat cancer.

Large machines called Linear Accelerators are used to deliver a ‘dose’ of radiation. When talking about radiation, dose is energy deposited per unit mass.  If the energy of the X-Rays is deposited in the mass of the tumour then the cancer cells will be destroyed.

However, we can’t just give a really high dose to a tumour as doing this would give a high dose to healthy organs surrounding the tumour.  If healthy cells receive too much dose they too will be destroyed.  Treatments are given over several weeks with one treatment a day which gives the healthy cells time to repair whilst not allowing the cancer cells to repair.

As a medical physicist I am involved in every step of the process including checking the CT scanner is scanning properly, checking for artefacts on the CT scans to be sure the tumour can be visualised, outlining healthy organs  on the CT scan and checking Oncologist’s outline of the tumour, producing or checking a treatment plan, taking patient and machine specific measurements on the linear accelerator to ensure the treatment is safe and accurate.

I am also involved in various projects to try improve efficacy and accuracy such as investigating the benefit to patients from using  MR scanners for treatment planning as well as the CT scanners.