PhD Studentship: Portable hybrid gamma-optical camera for quantitative 3D precision imaging in cancer diagnosis

Application details:
Reference number: SB/PH/2020
Start date of studentship: 1 October 2020
Closing date of advert: 3 April 2020

Supervisors:
Primary supervisor: Sarah Bugby
Secondary supervisor: Georgina Cosma
External partner contact: Paul Cload, Serac Imaging Systems Ltd.

This project is part-funded by the STFC Cancer Diagnosis Network+, a multidisciplinary community with academic, clinical and industry members aiming to collaboratively address challenges in cancer diagnosis.

This is an interdisciplinary project, the successful applicant will have the opportunity to:
• Work closely with an industry partner – Serac Imaging Systems Ltd. – and receive training in commercialisation and marketing of medical devices
• Collaborate with clinical and academic partners across the UK
• Develop skills in machine vision, experimental techniques (including working with ionising radiation), and medical imaging
• Contribute to the development of a new medical device to improve surgical outcomes

Loughborough University is a top-ten rated university in England for research intensity (REF2014). In choosing Loughborough for your research, you’ll work alongside academics who are leaders in their field. You will benefit from comprehensive support and guidance from our Doctoral College, including tailored careers advice, to help you succeed in your research and future career.

Find out more: http://www.lboro.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/supporting-you/research/

The Centre for Sensing and Imaging Science is an interdisciplinary research centre of the School of Science, Loughborough University, crossing the boundaries of Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry.

Full Project Detail:
The goal of this project is to develop and prototype a portable hybrid optical-gamma camera that can calculate source depth and semi-quantify activity within tissue to aid surgeons during challenging cancer diagnosis and staging procedures such as head and neck sentinel lymph node biopsy.

Serac Imaging Systems Ltd. are developing a hybrid gamma-optical camera that can localise sources in 2D, for clinical use. Localisation in 3D in a portable system is more difficult but could provide valuable additional information to the surgeon. For pinhole collimated systems, where sensitivity is dependent on imaging distance, an accurate determination of source distance is also needed for activity quantification. This project will negate the need for external optical tracking by using stereoscopic multi-pinhole imaging, combining this with multimodal imaging to calculate depth.

Over the course of this project, the successful candidate will develop and characterise a multimodal, quantifying, portable gamma camera for clinical use.

Find out more:
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Entry requirements:
Applicants should have, or expect to achieve, at least a 2:1 Honours degree (or equivalent) in Physics, Computer Science or a related subject. A relevant Master’s degree and/or experience in one or more of the following will be an advantage:
• Ionising radiation
• Medical physics
• Monte Carlo simulations
• X-ray or gamma-ray detection
• Machine learning
• Image analysis

Contact details:
Name: Dr Sarah Bugby
Email address: [Email Address Removed]
Telephone number: +44 (0)1509 222809

How to apply:
All applications should be made online at http://www.lboro.ac.uk/study/apply/research/. Under programme name, Physics.

Please quote reference : SB/PH/2020