The treatment of oncology diseases may undergo further research and clinical applications in the field of medical physics. This notion is presented by the University of Texas (U.S.A.) and the Portuguese Government, which predicts the creation of a healthcare unit for the treatment of cancer patients using high energy particle beam therapies, according to the national strategic guidelines.
In this sense, the researchers from the MD Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC) of the University of Texas (U.S.A.) – a worldwide renowned center dedicated exclusively to research, education and prevention of cancer using innovative techniques, namely proton therapies – will gather with other international experts in Coimbra, as part of the UT Austin Portugal international partnership. This meeting will take place on December 12 and 13.
The main goal? Bringing together close to 150 professionals – including doctors, biomedical engineers, physicists, nurses, medical imaging and radiotherapy technicians, researchers and even students in these fields – to discuss new challenges in medical physics and identify new opportunities for collaboration between the MDACC and Portuguese research institutions focused on this area.
“In addition to the researchers from Portuguese institutions, we will welcome professionals from the MD Anderson Cancer Center and the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), in order to discuss current trends and promote the exchange of knowledge in Medical Physics – namely innovative approaches in radiotherapy, radionuclide and proton therapy that deserve a top spot in the agenda”, explained Maria Filomena Botelho of iCBR-CIMAGO, FMUC.
The debate, entitled “New Challenges in Medical Physics”, will take place on the premises of the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Coimbra (FMUC), which, together with the Institute for Clinical and Biomedical Research of Coimbra (iCBR) and the Center for Research in Environment, Genetics and Oncobiology (CIMAGO), is responsible for the scientific coordination of this event, the first in the field of medical physics organized by the UT Austin Portugal Program.
Those interested in attending this debate can still register at https://forms.gle/THQYcA4ExBahVCJr7 (closing on December 6).
The complete program is available at https://utaustinportugal.org/events/new-challenges-in-medical-physics/.
About UT Austin Portugal and the area of Medical Physics: established in 2007, the UT Austin Portugal Program is a partnership program in Science and Technology between the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) and the University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin), supported by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Higher Education. The partnership was renewed in 2018, towards a new decade until 2030. After ten years of joint collaboration, UT Austin and Portuguese institutions continue to develop a cooperative effort to promote a thriving research agenda, strongly aligned with the strategy of the country in the different scientific and technological areas. Medical Physics is one of the Program’s five areas of activity, which aims to promote the establishment of new joint ventures among UT Austin’s Dell Medical School, Cockrell School of Engineering, UT’s MD Anderson Cancer Center, and Portuguese research groups in Medical Physics, proton therapies, and radiation oncology. Aligned with the national strategy for the development of high-energy particle beam therapies for cancer treatment, this initiative intents to boost the advanced training of oncology radiology experts.
For further inquiries:
Joana Desport Coelho
Communication Service
INESC TEC
Campus
Rua Dr Roberto Frias
4200-465 Porto
Portugal
P +351 22 209 4297
M +351 919 119 721
joana.d.coelho@inesctec.pt
www.inesctec.pt
