Publications by authors named "J M Harms"
Background And Purpose: The ESTRO 2023 Physics Workshop hosted the Fully-Automated Radiotherapy Treatment Planning (Auto-RTP) Challenge, where participants were provided with CT images from 16 prostate cancer patients (6 prostate only, 6 prostate + nodes, and 4 prostate bed + nodes) across 3 challenge phases with the goal of automatically generating treatment plans with minimal user intervention. Here, we present our team's winning approach developed to swiftly adapt to both different contouring guidelines and treatment prescriptions than those used in our clinic.
Materials And Methods: Our planning pipeline comprises two main components: 1) auto-contouring and 2) auto-planning engines, both internally developed and activated via DICOM operations.
Purpose: With recent clinical adoption of online adaptive radiation therapy (oART) and the increased workload associated with adaptive radiation therapy (RT), proper staffing for medical physicists is paramount to safe clinical operation. However, there is currently no consensus on the full-time equivalent (FTE) requirements for safe administration of cone beam computed tomography (CBCT)-guided oART. This study aimed to quantitatively assess medical physics workload and staffing needs of a CBCT-guided oART program.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study explores the dosimetric benefits of cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT)-based online adaptive radiation therapy (oART) for a non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patient exhibiting significant tumor shrinkage during ChemoRT. The patient was prescribed 60 Gray (Gy) in 30 fractions and was initially treated with conventional RT. After the delivery of the first four treatment fractions, the patient's treatment course was converted to oART due to tumor shrinkage seen on CBCT.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Elite breath-hold divers (BHD) possess several oxygen conserving adaptations to endure long dives similar to diving mammals. During dives, Bottlenose Dolphins may increase the alveolar ventilation (V) to perfusion (Q) ratio to increase alveolar oxygen delivery. We hypothesized that BHD possess similar adaptive mechanisms during apnea.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Following the detection of a novel highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) H5N1 in Newfoundland in late 2021, Canada ramped up surveillance efforts of wild birds to track the spread of the virus nationwide.* -
- During the first year of surveillance (November 2021-November 2022), over 6,000 sick and dead birds were tested, revealing that 27.4% were positive for HPAIV across various species and regions, particularly in the Atlantic and Central Flyways.* -
- The findings highlighted the need for ongoing monitoring and collaboration, as wild birds serve as both victims and reservoirs of the virus, with a notable prevalence of Eurasian-origin strains identified throughout