Dr G Whitfield, Prof Neil Burnet, Prof Norman Kirkby, Dr Marianne Aznar
No more applications being accepted
Competition Funded PhD Project (European/UK Students Only)
About the Project
The Christie Proton Beam Therapy (PBT) centre will be the first of two NHS funded PBT centres to open at the end of 2018. Within in a year, it will treat 10 new patients per week, prioritising children, young adults (aged < 25) and adults with skull base and paraspinal tumours.
PBT offers unique possibilities to improve radiotherapy for many cancer patients and especially to decrease long-term side effects in young patients. As demand for PBT will increase rapidly, it is crucial to develop reliable methods to identify patients who will benefit most.
This project will develop a predictive model of radiotherapy toxicity for multiple normal tissues within the brain to help select patients who may benefit most from PBT, to guide future commissioning.
The project will be in two phases. The first phase will be a retrospective study of a cohort of brain and skull base patients treated at the Christie with photons, and a cohort of NHS England patients treated overseas with PBT, to analyse the relationship between radiotherapy dose and late toxicities and develop a Normal Tissue Complication Probabilities (NCTP) model. The second phase will be a prospective study of brain and skull base patients treated with PBT at The Christie. Comparison between their proton and backup photon plans will allow estimation of the dosimetric benefit of PBT and the development of an NTCP model for acute toxicities. The NTCP models for acute and late toxicity and estimates of dosimetric benefit of PBT will be used to develop a model for patient selection for PBT.
This project will combine expertise from clinical teams at The Christie and researchers within the University of Manchester’s PRECISE PBT research group. It will help place the UK at the forefront of international efforts to develop an evidence base for PBT.
All applicants must:
• hold an undergraduate degree in medicine
• be post-registration clinicians and ideally have a specialist training post;
• have been resident and worked within the EEA (European Economic Area) for at least three years prior to application
Funding Notes
The clinical fellowships are usually tenable for three years, although in certain circumstances they may be four years duration. We will provide running expenses, an appropriate salary in line with the applicant’s current salary and grade, and full coverage of University PhD fees. Where international student fees are payable, please provide evidence with your application of how the shortfall will be covered (approximately £17,000 per annum).
As an equal opportunities institution we welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation and transgender status. All appointments are made on merit.
Continue with Facebook
