We use cookies and other tools to enhance your experience on our website and to analyze our web traffic. For more information about these cookies and the data collected, please refer to our website privacy policy.
Welcome to the Radiation Oncology Physics Residency Program
The Residency Program in Radiation Oncology Physics at the Loyola University Medical Center is intended to provide comprehensive training in all aspects of clinical physics. Candidates for the training program are expected to have obtained a CAMPEP approved MS or PhD in Medical Physics or closely related discipline and would be highly motivated to prepare for a clinically oriented career.
Training will occur at our “state-of- the-art” treatment-facility in Maywood, IL and affiliated clinics under the guidance and supervision of an experienced staff of medical physicists, medical dosimetrists and radiation oncologists. Loyola University Medical Center in located in Maywood, IL and is 12 miles west of downtown Chicago.
Intraoperative Radiation Therapy (IORT) with Zeiss INTRABEAM
Eclipse Treatment Planning System
ARIA record and verify system integrated with EPIC hospital wide network
Residency Statistics
Year Admitted
Number of Applicants
Number Accepted
Number Graduated
ABR In Process
ABR Certified
Number Clinical Appointments
Number Academic Appointments
2015
38
1
0
1-Part 1
0
0
0
2016
0
0
0
1-Part 1
0
0
0
2017
47
1
1
1-Part 1, 1-Part 2
0
0
1
2018
0
0
0
1-Part 1
1
0
1
2019
74
1
1
1-Part 1 1-Part 2
1
0
1
2020
0
0
0
1-Part 1
2
1
1
2021
96
1
1
2-Part 1
2
2
0
2022
18*
1
0
2-Part 1, 1-Part 2
2
2
0
2023
81*
1
1
1-Part 1, 2-Part 2
3
3
1
2024
75
2
1
2-Part 1, 1-Part 2
4
3
1
*Resident recruitment outside of Medical Physics Match
Featured Videos
Radiation Oncology Residency Virtual Tour
Program Goals and Objectives
Broad areas of clinical training will include equipment calibration and quality assurance, radiation dosimetry, radiation shielding, facility design, special clinical procedures, treatment planning and imaging. The program length is 24 months.
The physics residency program is fully integrated into the daily clinical operations of the Radiation Oncology Department. The resident works closely with other members of the department: Staff Radiation Oncologists, Medical Physicists, Medical Dosimetrists, Medical Residents, Nurses and Radiation Therapy Technologists. There are ample opportunities to interact with other departments within Loyola University Medical Center, including Diagnostic Radiology, Interventional Radiology, Surgery and Neurosurgery.
Residents are expected to complete 12 clinical physics rotations that span a variety of topics in medical physics, such as, (1) Beam calibration and detectors, (2) Linear accelerator commissioning and quality assurance, (3) Daily physics duties, (4) Treatment planning procedures, (5) Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), (6) High- and Low- dose rate brachytherapy, (7) Image guided radiation therapy (IGRT), (8) Radiation safety and shielding design, (9) Special procedures (SRS, SBRT, TBI, and TSET), and (10) Joint imaging therapy rotation.
Each rotation is typically two to three months in length, and is under the direct supervision of a faculty physicist. In addition to meeting with their rotation specific mentor(s) on a weekly basis to discuss their progress, residents will also meet with the director of the residency program monthly. Residents are expected to keep a log documenting their clinical and didactic activities which is reviewed during their meeting with the residency director. Following the completion of a rotation, the resident is evaluated by their rotation specific mentor(s) and additional faculty members typically via an Oral examination.
In addition to the clinical training, the resident will receive didactic education in radiation therapy physics and related disciplines. However, these courses are offered mainly as a refresher and not intended to replace medical physics didactic training which the candidate should have already received. Residents will be expected to attend daily treatment planning conferences, weekly physics meetings, seminars/grand rounds and monthly physics journal clubs. Participation in research projects is encouraged with the aim of presentation at AAPM, ASTRO, or RSNA conferences and publications in affiliated journals.
The residency training program is conducted strictly in accordance with the guidelines from the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) Report 249 (Essentials and Guidelines for Clinical Medical Physics Residency Training Programs, AAPM 2013). After successful completion of the residency program, the candidate will have the required knowledge and training to take and successfully complete the American Board of Radiology (ABR) certification examination in Therapeutic Radiological Physics.
The main goals of the residency program are:
Provide a comprehensive and in-depth practical training in all aspects of clinical medical physics
Prepare the resident for certification in Therapeutic Radiology/Radiation Oncology physics.
Staff and Resources
The Department of Radiation Oncology at Loyola University Medical Center is staffed with 9 radiation oncologists, 8 medical residents, 2 physics resident, 9 medical physicists, 5 dosimetrists, 6 radiation oncology nurses, a department manager and 22 radiation therapists. The department also has an affiliate radiation biology faculty member, research nurse and research coordinator.
Equipment includes 4 Varian linacs with on-board imaging, respiratory gating and volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT). Several linacs are equipped with Surface Image Guided RT (VisionRT/Align RT positioning/monitoring) and one of our linacs (Varian Edge) includes the Calypso patient monitor system.
Varian TrueBeam Linac
Varian Edge Linac
Philips Big Bore CT
Siemens Somatom Open AS CT
There are two in-house CT scanners (tPhilips Brilliance Big Bore multi-slice CT scanners and a Siemens Somatom Open AS); several MR scanners in the Department of Radiology (1.5T to 3T) as well as a Phillips PET/CT scanner.
In addition, the department has very active programs in SRS/SBRT, high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy, total body irradiation (TBI), and INTRABEAM Intra-operative Radiotherapy (IORT), total body irradiation (TBI).
Graduate School: Wayne State University About: Luke is from western Michigan. He holds a B.S. with Honors in Physics from Michigan State University. During undergrad, he connected with a local medical physicist and became fascinated with the field. Currently, he is finishing his M.S. at Wayne State University where he has participated in research with Online Adaptive Radiotherapy. Outside of the clinic, he enjoys sports, running, exploring nature, golf, and anything Star Wars.
Yussuf Abdelal, MS
Junior Physics Resident
Graduate School: Brown University About: Yussuf Abdelal was born on Cape Cod and has spent most of his life living near Boston, Massachusetts. He graduated from the University of Massachusetts – Boston with a major in Biology and a minor in Physics. After working for a year in a biomedical lab for Siemens Healthineers, he entered into Brown University’s new Medical Physics Master’s degree program. There, his research focused on single-iso multi-met plan optimization using Python-based scripting in RayStation. Yussuf is an international gourmand who loves to replicate authentic flavors in his kitchen. He is also a fan of sci-fi, video editing, and spending time outdoors.
Meet our Resident Alumni
Rakesh Patel, PhD, DABR
Graduated from our residency program in 2017: Rakesh Patel is currently the Chief Medical Physicist and RSO at Maryland Oncology Hematology, Center for Advance Radiation Oncology in Silver Spring, MD.
Hossein Lavaffi, PhD, DABR
Graduated from our residency program in 2019: Hossein Lavaffi is a Medical Physicist with Varian Medical Systems.
Sabrina Hoffman, MS, DABR
Graduated from our residency program in 2021. She is currently employed at UChicago Medicine AdventHealth Hinsdale as a Medical Physicist in Radiation Oncology.
Alexander R. Podgorsak, PhD, DABR
Graduated from our residency program in 2023. He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology (SMD) at the University of Rochester Medical Center.
Michael de la Fuente, MS
Staff Physicist
Graduated from our residency program in 2024. He joined the Loyola Medical Physics program as a Clinical Physicist.
Contact Us
Julie Moravec Administrative Secretary Loyola University Medical Center 2160 South 1st Ave Maywood, IL 60153
Applicants must use the MP-RAP (Medical Physics Residency Application Program) system at https://aapm.org/MPRAP and must participate in the MedPhys Match Program specifying the Loyola University Medical Center program code 21711 (https://www.natmatch.com/medphys/). Selected applicants will be invited to interview online.
Please note that Loyola University Medical Center is unable to process applications from individuals requiring visa support and/or those on Optional Practical Training.
