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Andrew McDonald, M.D., M.S.Andrew McDonald, M.D., M.S., was appointed the second holder of the Radiation Oncology Accelerated (ROAR) Southeast Cancer Foundation Endowed Chair in Radiation Oncology by the Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama System during the Sept. 5 board meeting.

McDonald is Associate Professor and Director of the Radiation Oncology Residency Program in the UAB Department of Radiation Oncology.

He joined the department in 2017 after completing residency training at UAB. He holds a master’s degree in mathematics from UAB and a medical degree from the UAB School of Medicine.

“Dr. McDonald is an extremely important part of our practice. He has become a leader in innovative treatments for prostate cancer. He works daily to assess treatment outcomes and help patients of the future as we look back and make determinations about treatments that provide the highest cures and quality of life,” said James. A. Bonner, Chair, UAB Department of Radiation Oncology.

McDonald is a nationally recognized expert in the treatment of genitourinary malignancies and is an active member of the Cancer Service Line Genitourinary Cancer Management Team at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Lewis Z. Shi, M.D., Ph.D.University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Department of Radiation Oncology researchers have identified HIF1α-regulated glycolysis as a key metabolic control of IFN-γ production in hypoxic T cells and immune checkpoint blocker (ICB) response.

Lewis Zhichang Shi, M.D., Ph.D., with coauthors, recently published the research, “HIF1α -regulated glycolysis promotes activation-induced cell death and IFN-γ induction in hypoxic T cells,” in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Communications.

Shi is the Director of Radiobiology in the Department of Radiation Oncology Division of Radiation Biology and the Koikos-Petelos-Jones-Bragg ROAR Endowed Professor for Cancer Research at UAB. He is also a scientist in the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center and in the Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS). His translational research program investigates the interaction of T-cell metabolism and radiotherapy, resistance to immunotherapies, and fundamental mechanisms underlying the role of the immune system in cancer therapies.

UAB Department of Radiation Oncology providers are among this year’s top-performing physicians and advanced practice providers (APPs) honored for excellence in patient experience.

The Office of Patient Experience and Engagement (OPXE) recognized 446 providers for the exceptional care they delivered to patients in fiscal year 2024. These top ambulatory providers have demonstrated remarkable excellence and exceptional communication, scoring 95% or higher in the Care Satisfaction domain of the ambulatory clinic patient experience survey. This domain evaluates vital aspects of provider-patient interactions and includes the following metrics:

The UAB Department of Radiation Oncology is pleased to announce the promotion of three faculty members in the areas of medical physics, radiation oncology, and radiobiology, effective Oct. 1, 2024.

Please join us in congratulating Carlos E. Cardenas, Ph.D., and Adam Kole M.D., Ph.D., on promotions to associate professor, non-tenure, and to Lewis Z. Shi, M.D., Ph.D., on promotion to professor and tenure. We thank these faculty members for their passion, commitment and distinct contributions to our department, patients, and the UAB medical community.

Taylor Schanel, GS4Taylor Schanel (GS4) has been appointed as a predoctoral trainee on a National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Training Program in Brain Tumor Biology T32 grant for her investigation into underlying mechanisms of Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields) efficacy in brain cancer.

Gobind Gill, M.D.Gobind Gill, M.D., joined the UAB Department of Radiation Oncology as assistant professor on Sept. 3, 2024. Gill came to UAB after graduating in July from the Radiation Oncology Residency Program at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire.

By Mackenzie Sexton

New technology presents new opportunities in patient care, something that Yogesh Kumar, Ph.D., knew well when he began researching the use of machine-learning software in cancer treatment. When he received this year’s Mary Ann Harvard NextGen Scholar Award for his work integrating artificial intelligence into radiotherapy, he knew he was on the right track.

His project, “A Platform to Facilitate Radiotherapy Treatment History With Follow-Up CT/MRI Images in Picture Archiving Communication Systems for Improving Patient Care,” aims to use machine-learning software to automate the segmentation and registration processes during cancer treatment.

The UAB Department of Radiation Oncology welcomed four new residents, including three radiation oncology trainees and one medical physics trainee, on July 1, 2024.

Samuel Chen, M.D.; Reza Djavadian, M.D., Ph.D.; and Kayla Steed, M.D., Ph.D. join nine current residents in the Radiation Oncology Residency Program.

Samuel Chen, M.D., (PGY2) is from Buffalo, New York. He received his Bachelor of Science in bioinformatics at St. Bonaventure University and earned his medical degree from SUNY Update Medical University in Syracuse. Chen completed his internship year at the University of Cincinnati in Ohio.

J. David Roveda Jr., M.D., joins the UAB Department of Radiation as the first UAB-employed radiation oncologist at the Infirmary Cancer Center in Mobile, Alabama, under the new affiliation between UAB Health System and Infirmary Health announced in January. Roveda recently completed his radiation oncology residency at UAB in June prior to joining the faculty as assistant professor on July 1, 2024.

At residency graduation, he was honored by the department with the Quality Care and Improvement Award, which recognizes outstanding resident contribution and exemplary dedication to quality improvement in radiation oncology.

Originally from Mobile, Roveda earned his undergraduate degree in chemical engineering from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa in 2015 and his medical degree from the University of South Alabama (USA) College of Medicine in 2019. He completed his internship year at USA Health University Hospital in Mobile before beginning residency at UAB in 2020.

The UAB Department of Radiation Oncology honored its 2024 graduating radiation oncology and medical physics residents at a dinner celebration and awards ceremony June 14 in Homewood, Alabama.

Family, friends, faculty, staff, and alumni gathered at the GM 705 restaurant to celebrate and thank graduating residents for their contributions to our department, our patients, and the UAB community over the years and wish them success in their new employment.

Join us in congratulating radiation oncology residency graduates Curtis Clark, M.D., Ph.D.; J. David Roveda, Jr., M.D.; Christopher Veale, M.D.; and medical physics residency graduate Yanan Cao, Ph.D.

Dr. Clark will be employed by Alliance Cancer Care in the Huntsville/Decatur/Florence, Alabama area. Dr. Roveda will become the first UAB employed radiation oncologist at the Infirmary Cancer Center in Mobile, Alabama. Dr. Veale will join Columbus Community Hospital in Columbus, Nebraska. Dr. Cao will be employed by East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina.

Awards

Annual departmental awards were also presented to faculty, staff, and residents during the graduation celebration. Congratulations to all who were recognized for academic achievement, education, resident support, and mentorship.

Dr. Markus Bredel, M.D., Ph.D., and Jacob Rojymon, M.D., FRCR, MBAUAB Department of Radiation Oncology Professors Markus Bredel, M.D., Ph.D., and Rojymon Jacob, M.D., FRCR, MBA, recently announced they will step into chair positions at the University of Miami and the University of Mississippi, respectively, on Aug. 1, 2024.

Bredel joined the UAB Department of Radiation Oncology in 2010 and is a graduate of the UAB Radiation Oncology Residency Program. At UAB, he served as the Director of Functional Brain Radiosurgery and Head of Brain Tumor Research in the Department of Radiation Oncology and Deputy Associate Director for Translational Research at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center. He was appointed the Sharon A. Spencer Distinguished Endowed Chair in Translational Radiation Oncology in 2017.

Bredel succeeds Alan Pollack, M.D., Ph.D., as chair in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University Of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine and the University of Miami Health System.

“Bredel’s nationally acclaimed research as a physician scientist at UAB has contributed greatly to the understanding of brain tumor genetics, particularly glioma,” said UAB Department of Radiation Oncology Chair James A. Bonner, M.D.

Chair James A. Bonner, M.D., (left) and Senior Vice Chair John Fiveash, M.D., reached the 25-year milestone at UAB Medicine in the Department of Radiation Oncology along with Operations Director Ginna Blaylock and Radiation Therapist Karen Kirksey.

Several radiation oncology employees, including four faculty members, were recently honored with 2023 UAB Medicine Service Awards, which recognize employees for years of faithful service and acknowledge their special contributions to our organization.

Congratulations to Chair James A. Bonner, M.D., Senior Vice-Chair John Fiveash, M.D., who both celebrated 25 years, and to all of our team members whose service to UAB Medicine through 2023 ranged from five to 30 years!

2023 UAB Medicine Service Award Recipients

30 Years

Laura Stewart, RN-Oncology

25 Years

James Bonner, M.D., Chairman and Professor

Virginia (Ginna) Blaylock, Director of Operations

John Fiveash, M.D., Senior Vice Chair and Professor

Karen Kirksey, Radiation Therapist

The UAB Department of Radiation Oncology is delighted to announce two new matches for our Radiation Oncology Residency Program and one new match for our Medical Physics Residency Program as a result of Match Day 2024.

Krishmita Siwakoti, M.D., and Matthew Trotta, M.D., matched with us on March 15, 2024, and will start their radiation oncology residency in July 2025 after their internship year. Siwakoti joins us from B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences, Nepal, and Trotta joins us from the University of West Virginia Medical School.

“They are both outstanding and will be a great addition to our resident group,” said UAB Radiation Oncology Residency Program Director Andrew McDonald, M.D.

In addition, Blessing Oladele, M.S., Ph.D., matched with us on March 27, 2024, and will begin her medical physics residency this July. She joins us from The University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

ROAR presented UAB Department of Radiation Oncology Chair James A. Bonner with a check for $500,000 for cancer research on April 4, 2024, at the Greystone Country Club in Birmingham. (Credit: Amy W. Richardson)

ROAR presented the proceeds to Chair James A. Bonner, M.D., at an appreciation celebration on April 4 at the Greystone Country Club in Birmingham.

More than 380 people from the local community and beyond attended this year’s gala on Jan. 13, making it one of the most successful fundraising events in ROAR history.

“We are so impressed by the amazing support and generosity of our local community,” said 2023-24 ROAR President Mona Stephens. “This gala was our most successful fundraiser to date with a record turnout that exceeded our expectations. We are honored to be able to donate the most proceeds we’ve ever raised from this event to cancer research at UAB and look forward to our next gala in January.”

Markus Bredel, M.D., Ph.D., professor in the UAB Department of Radiation Oncology, is featured in a new “Lab Chat” video produced by the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB.

Bredel is Director of Functional Brain Radiosurgery, Head of Brain Tumor Research, and the Sharon A. Spencer Distinguished Endowed Chair in Translational Radiation Oncology.

“Lab Chat” takes viewers on a quick 4-minute journey through the laboratory with Bredel and his research team giving viewers a glimpse of cancer research with real-world implications.

As a physician scientist, Bredel studies a group of brain tumors called diffuse gliomas.

“I see in clinic on a daily basis how those tumors impact my patients very substantially,” Bredel said. “The hope is that with the research that we’re doing, we can improve our understanding of those tumors and then translate this into advanced therapies.”

Lewis Shi, M.D., Ph.D. Lewis Zhichang Shi, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor and director of Radiobiology, UAB Department of Radiation Oncology, and Koikos-Petelos-Jones-Bragg ROAR Endowed Professor for Cancer Research at UAB, has been awarded a $2.06 million R01 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Cancer Institute (NCI) to study how T cells control the therapeutic effects of radiation.

The five-year grant entitled “T Cell-intrinsic Metabolic Control of Radiotherapy” is funded through January 2029, and will allow Shi to explore the connection between T cells—the immune cells that defend the body against infection and tumors—and radiotherapy in an effort to overcome underlying mechanisms causing resistance in cancer patients to therapeutic drugs known as immune checkpoint blockers (ICBs).

The University of Alabama System Board of Trustees approved Robert Y. Kim, M.D., as professor emeritus in the UAB Department of Radiation Oncology during the Nov. 3, 2023, board meeting.

During his 48 years of service to the Department of Radiation Oncology, Kim made extraordinary contributions to the university and the field of radiation oncology. His long career focused on the treatment of prostate and gynecologic cancers. His research efforts focused on image-guided brachytherapy and application of new technology in this area.

“It has been such a great honor to practice alongside Dr. Kim and see the lasting impact he has had on our patients, residents, and research endeavors,” said James A. Bonner, M.D., chair of the UAB Department of Radiation Oncology. “We thank him for the tremendous work he has done to establish a culture of excellence in our department. As professor emeritus, he will continue to be of great service to our faculty, trainees, and staff.”

Radiation Oncology welcomed its first advanced practice providers (APPs): Hayley French (left) is a certified physician assistant and Heather Locke (right) is a nurse practitioner.

The UAB Department of Radiation Oncology welcomed two new advanced practice providers (APP) in October 2023.

Hayley French is a certified physician assistant (PA-C) who joins Radiation Oncology from the UAB Epilepsy Center, where she worked for six years. Originally from Lexington, Kentucky, French attended the University of Kentucky for her undergraduate and graduate programs: Bachelor of Health Sciences (2012) and Master’s in Physician Assistant Studies (2017). French has worked in health care since 2010, starting as a certified nursing assistant (CNA), then as a medical technologist before becoming a PA-C.

Outside of work, Hayley sings in the chorus for the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. She also enjoys antique shopping and hanging out with her dog, Winnie, a shar-pei/lab mix.

“Everyone in Radiation Oncology has been so welcoming. I am so excited to be a part of this outstanding team,” French said.

Heather Locke is a nurse practitioner (NP) who joins Radiation Oncology from UAB Endocrinology and the 1917 Clinic, where she worked as an NP from 2021 to 2023. Born in Anchorage, Alaska, Locke lived in Vancouver, Washington, and Henderson, Kentucky, before moving to Birmingham in 2019. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) at Murray State University in 2016 and her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) in Family and Adult Geriatrics Primary Care at the University of Louisville in 2019.

Locke’s hobbies outside of work include reading, running, hiking, and watching documentaries curled up on the couch with her two beagles Milton and Marty. She also spends many Saturdays orienteering with her husband at Oak Mountain. Fun fact: She has an identical twin sister.

“Radiation Oncology is a very interesting field with extremely compassionate and efficient care teams. Everyone here seems to genuinely love what they do every day,” Locke said. “I look forward to making this my home for many years to come!”

Richard Popple, Ph.D. (left) and Carlos Cardenas, Ph.D., represented the UAB Automated Planning Team at the ESTRO Physics Workshop contest in Turin, Italy, Oct. 13-14, 2023. UAB won first place in the competiton. Photo credit: Celine Dechamps, ESTRO.

Medical physicists in the UAB Department of Radiation Oncology won first place in the European Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ESTRO) 2023 Fully Automated Radiotherapy Treatment Planning Challenge. According to the competition website, this challenge sought to address the question, “How close are we to fully automated radiotherapy treatment planning?” Thirteen international teams from academic institutions and commercial entities participated in the competition, all tasked with leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and software tools to fully automate radiotherapy treatment planning.

The UAB Automated Planning Team, “Killing Cancer With Code,” won first place in both phases of the competition, beating out competitors from other prestigious cancer centers around the world, including two from North America.

The UAB team is made up of five full-time medical physics faculty members: Rex A. Cardan, Ph.D.; Carlos E. Cardenas, Ph.D.; Joseph Harms, Ph.D.; Richard A. Popple, Ph.D.; and Eric Simiele, Ph.D.

During the online phase of the challenge, participants were provided with radiotherapy simulation CTs for 10 prostate cancer patients, together with a treatment intent/prescription. The cases were a mix of prostate only, prostate plus nodes, and post-operative prostate plus nodes treatment intents, representing the three most common clinical challenges encountered for prostate radiotherapy. Participants were asked to generate a treatment plan for each case in an “as-automated-as-possible way,” including identification of healthy organs and target volumes. The plans were scored based on radiation dose delivered to the prostate target volumes and the degree to which the healthy organs were spared unnecessary dose.

Popple, professor and assistant vice chair for Medical Physics in the Department of Radiation Oncology, and Cardenas, assistant professor and director of Automated Treatment Planning in the Department of Radiation Oncology and director of AI Research and Development for the Marnix E. Heersink Institute for Biomedical Innovation, represented UAB in the last phase of the competition, the ESTRO Physics Workshop contest in Turin, Italy, Oct. 13-14. This final phase enabled participants to demonstrate their systems and discuss the challenge and its results. According to Cardenas, UAB was the only team to demonstrate a fully automated process, requiring no human intervention.

This challenge was the culmination of a project the department’s Automated Planning Team began several years ago to improve standardization and quality of care through the use of automation at UAB.

“The challenge came at a perfect time for our team” observed Popple. “We were able to combine the software tools and infrastructure we have been developing over several years to build a one-click solution that generates high-quality radiotherapy treatment plans.” He added that, “in addition to providing us with a fixed timeline, participating in the challenge made our work toward building this clinical tool even more fun, winning the challenge was just the icing on the cake.”

Cardenas said the AI tools developed at UAB and demonstrated in this competition will soon have a positive impact on cancer care in Alabama. "The positive impact of these tools go well-beyond cancer care in Birmingham," Cardenas said.

“Our team has secured research funding from the Center for Clinical Translational Sciences (CCTS), supported by the National Institutes of Health, to evaluate feasibility of using automated planning tools at community cancer centers, partnering with Russell Medical Cancer Center (Alexander City, Alabama) on this project. This is a very exciting project as the integration of AI within radiotherapy represents a paradigm shift, not only technologically but also in its potential to redefine equitable health care delivery across the Southeast.”

Lauren C. Nassour-Caswell's poster won first place in the student category. Photo credit: Mike StrawnLauren C. Nassour-Caswell won first place for her poster in the student category at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center Research Retreat on Oct. 13 at Regions Field.

Nassour-Caswell is currently a biochemistry and structural biology theme Ph.D. candidate in the UAB Graduate Biomedical Sciences program and is sponsored by UAB Department of Radiation Oncology Associate Vice Chair of Translational Research and Hale-Stephens ROAR Endowed Professor Christopher Willey, M.D., Ph.D.

The retreat’s poster sessions included more than 165 research posters in a student category and non-student category.

Nassour-Caswell’s winning poster is titled, “Myristoylated Alanine-Rich C-Kinase Substrate (MARCKS) as a target for pathological tunneling nanotubes in Glioblastoma.”

“My work investigates the role of MARCKS in the generation and stability of tunneling nanotubes in GBM (glioblastoma) and how these structures can potentially be targeted using a peptide derived from the protein,” Nassour-Caswell said. “Our recent findings demonstrate how MARCKS phosphorylation status appears to be imperative for maintaining the direction and rigidity of TNTs. Additionally, we find that administration of the MARCKS peptide abrogates TNTs and induces a similar phenotype seen when MARCKS signaling dynamics are compromised. These results reveal a new perspective of cellular intercommunication between tumor and non-tumor cells as well as a potential way to target it.”

Earlier this year, the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB named Nassour-Caswell winner of the 2023 Mary Ann Harvard NextGen Scholar Award for her research in this area.