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Applied Mathematics Colloquium

Dr. John Eley, UMB School of Medicine

Location

Mathematics/Psychology : 104

Date & Time

December 5, 2014, 12:00 pm1:00 pm

Description

Title:

High-performance Computing for Experimental Radiation Therapies

Abstract: Radiation treatment for cancer has changed rapidly in the past decades, with some of the greatest breakthroughs occurring in digital imaging, robotic beam-delivery systems, and high-energy particle accelerators, all of which rely heavily on parallel computing to plan radiation beams for millimeter-precision cancer treatment.  Furthermore, the design and development of entirely new cancer treatment strategies often begins with virtual computer simulations to screen and test promising ideas.  Virtual studies are an effective way to study ideas that could not be tested directly in patients and to minimize the use of animals in early stage research.  However, accurate radiation-transport simulations that realistically consider the anatomy of small animals or patients can be computationally expensive and, thus, benefit from large-scale, parallel computing architectures.  The newly constructed Maryland Proton Treatment Center in Baltimore will be one of the first centers in the US to offer scanned-beam proton beam therapy, using magnetic fields to sweep particle beams precisely across cancer targets and to deliver cancer-sterilizing doses of radiation.  In this light, there will likely be many opportunities for computational research efforts that aim to grow this new technology.  We especially see a possible opportunity for collaborations between the University of Maryland School of Medicine and high-performance computing departments in the University System of Maryland.