FLASH radiotherapy delivered at ultrahigh dose-rates (UHDR) has shown promise in reducing normal tissue toxicity while maintaining tumor control and it is thought to have the potential to revolutionize cancer treatment. In this talk, some of the current research aimed towards clinical translation of FLASH and its challenges will be discussed. Furthermore, the research of the X-ray Cancer Imaging and Therapy Experimental (XCITE) lab at the University of Victoria on UHDR irradiations with x-rays will be presented: 1) using a low-cost low-energy conventional x-ray tube and 2) using a high-cost high-energy physics experimental linac. We modified a conventional x-ray tube for the delivery of short UHDR irradiations by designing a cost-effective beam shutter system. A validation of beam delivery of this system by means plastic scintillator dosimetry and Monte Carlo simulations will be presented. In addition, we have designed and are in the process of installing an electron-to-photon beam converter on a 10 MeV, 1 kW (i.e. 0.1 mA current) electron beamline at TRIUMF, Canada’s particle physics laboratory. The expected dosimetric properties of the UHDR 10 MV photon beam and the challenges of re-designing a beamline for small animal experiments will be discussed.

Short Bio:
Magdalena Bazalova-Carter is an Assistant Professor and Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Medical Physics in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada. She received her PhD degree at McGill University and postdoctoral training at Stanford University. Her current research interests include Monte Carlo simulations and experiments of x-ray fluorescence and photon-counting CT imaging, small animal radiotherapy and FLASH radiotherapy. She is the recipient of the 2018 John S. Laughlin Young Scientist Award awarded by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine.