The Department of Radiation Oncology conducts original laboratory and clinical research to develop new strategies for the prevention and treatment of cancer. Research is organized around three areas, clinical radiation oncology, physics, and radiation biology, and focused on promoting patient health and well-being.

The development of more effective treatment machines and strategies for the precise delivery of dose has dramatically enhanced the control of an individual patient's cancer. In parallel with the development of technology, there has been an explosive growth in the dissection of the biological factors within each tumor that will affect the growth and potential cure of each tumor. The factor that ties these two elements together is the effective practice of clinical medicine, from initial diagnosis through treatment to subsequent follow up. At UC Davis, we are committed to an integrated approach to research whereby all three elements, clinical, physics and biology, are tied together in a team approach to pursue new patient-focused knowledge. To help in this approach, the department has forged close ties with the Veterans' Administration at Mather as it offers state-of-the-art basic research facilities to address fundamental questions of basic biology. In conjunction with these facilities, departmental laboratories in close proximity to the clinical treatment area in Sacramento are ideally situated to investigate questions related to individual patients or patient samples. The overall goal of our approach is to develop tools that allow the individualization of treatment delivery to each patient in our care.

Faculty 
Andrew Vaughan, Ph.D.

Areas of research interest

Dr. Vaughan:  During treatment of cancer with radiation and/or cytotoxic drugs a small number of individuals may develop a second malignancy, such as leukemia, as a result of their therapy. We have proposed that this second malignancy may arise from a failure of a specific cell death pathway, called apoptosis, to eradicate cells that harbor pre-malignant changes. We have identified such cells in the laboratory and are now screening individual patients for similar pre-malignant signatures to offer both a method of identification of those at risk, but more importantly, to design strategies to suppress the incidence of second cancers.

Faculty
James Purdy, Ph.D.
Chief, Physics Section

(alphabetical)
Joerg Lehmann, Ph.D.
Julian Perks, Ph.D.
Robin Stern, Ph.D.
Claus Yang, Ph.D.

Areas of research interest

In radiation physics, we are introducing new techniques for planning, delivery, and dose measurement of radiation therapy, involving 3-D conformal radiation therapy, image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT), intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), stereotactic radiotherapy and radiosurgery. Specifically, we are focusing on

• IMRT/IGRT planning, delivery, and the QA process for certain sites (such as prostate, head and neck, lung, etc.);
• the development of improved imaging techniques;
• the development and implementation of a radiation oncology imaging, treatment planning, and varification submission and archival system (RT-PACS);
• and the use of Monte Carlo simulations in radiation therapy.

Faculty (alphabetical)

Allen Chen, M.D. 
Stephen Franklin, M.D. 
Richard L.S. Jennelle, M.D. 
Janice Ryu, M.D.

Areas of research interest

Our specific fields of interests include the brain, breast, GU/GI, GYN, head and neck, lung, lymphoma, melanoma, pediatrics, prostrate, and sarcomas. Our broad interests include clinical trials. We focus on low-dose radiation biology, 3D conformal radiation therapy, intensity modulated radiotherapy, stereotactic radiotherapy and radiosurgery, high-dose radiotherapy, chemoprevention, image-guided radiotherapy, and translational research.