Development of new radiation detector concept for imaging of alpha radiotherapy
Youngho Seo, Professor
UC San Francisco
Closed. This professor is continuing with Fall 2024 apprentices on this project; no new apprentices needed for Spring 2025.
Radiotherapy with alpha-emitting nuclides is an extremely promising technique in cancer therapy. The very short range of alpha particles compared to beta particles allows to deliver a much higher therapeutical dose to the lesion, sparing healthy tissue.
A fundamental problem with this technique is the inability of current radiation imaging devices to locate the position of the alpha-emitting nuclides inside the human body, so there exists a lack of understanding of the pharmacokinetics of developmental alpha radiopharmaceuticals. The typical low doses injected in this therapy along with the high energy of the emitted gamma rays makes this task a quasi-impossible challenge.
Our research team is developing a novel radiation detector dedicated to overcome this hurdle and to provide a device that can image the location of alpha-emitters in small animals and potentially humans. The final goal is to develop a technology that enables the study of alpha radiopharmaceuticals in small animals, and/or monitoring of such radiopharmaceuticals in humans for personalized treatments.
In this project, the student will be closely collaborating with the team to develop one or several aspects of the project, from data analysis to detector modeling, with the possibility of publishing a manuscript in a peer reviewed journal.
Note: on this project you will collaborate with the PRL group under direct supervision of Dr. Javier Caravaca (https://profiles.ucsf.edu/javier.caravaca)
Role: The involved student will acquire a deep understanding of gamma ray imaging and learn the principles of radiation detection, detector simulation and modeling, quantitative image reconstruction, and data analysis.
The student is expected to develop one or more of the tasks below:
- Develop framework to calibrate/characterize detector and analyze detector data
- Develop simulation framework for radiation detector and calibrate/validate model with real data collected from radioactive sources
- Develop alternative reconstruction algorithms for new detector concept and test it with real data
Qualifications: Required:
- Understanding of the basics of gamma ray detection and nuclear physics
- Experience in quantitative data analysis
- Ability to work on site (UCSF Mission Bay area) at least once a month
Desirable:
- Familiarity with programming languages C, C++ and/or Python
- Laboratory experience
Hours: 6-8 hrs
Off-Campus Research Site: Most of the work can be done remotely. However, on site (UCSF Mission Bay area) presence is required once a month to directly work with the radiation detector prototype and for in-person meetings. Off campus location: UCSF Center for Molecular and Functional Imaging 185 Berry Street, Suite 350 San Francisco, CA 94107
Related website: http://www.radiology.ucsf.edu/physics
Biological & Health Sciences Engineering, Design & Technologies