Radiation Therapeutics and Biology Study Section – RTB

Topics

• Basic molecular, cellular-radiation, and thermal interactions at therapeutic doses: radiation chemistry, DNA damage and repair, cell cycle regulation, hypoxia, signal transduction, apoptosis, heat shock proteins, growth factors, cytokines, oxidative stress, reactive oxygen species, tumor suppressor genes, cytogenetics, genomic instability, as well as UV and radiation carcinogenesis and investigations of mechanisms of DNA damage and repair.
• Mechanisms and applications of modifiers of radiation response (including radiation sensitizers, radioprotectors, fractionation, hypoxia, and other modulators) and combination of radiation with novel agents (including those targeting growth factors, signaling pathways, DNA repair, and tumor angiogenesis).
• Physics of treatment planning, treatment delivery, and dosimetry of brachytherapy, intravascular brachytherapy, thermal therapy, targeted radionuclide therapy, photodynamic therapy (PDT), heavy ion or neutron capture therapy, and technology and outcome analysis methodologies related to radiation treatment and planning.
• Therapies including: intensity modulation radiation therapy (IMRT), brachytherapy, chemoradiotherapy, conformal therapy, tomotherapy, PDT (including interstitial PDT), photoimmunotherapy, hyperthermia, radiofrequency ablation, cryoablation, intravascular radiotherapy, radiation-induced gene therapy, radionuclide therapy, feasibility studies to establish proof-of-principle of novel radiation therapeutics or combinations of radiation with systemic agents, as well as image-guided therapy and other imaging and image analysis as it relates to targeting of radiation and assessment of response.
• Pre-clinical studies to model radiation therapeutics, tumor biology, and radiation response modulation including: pharmacokinetics, response assessment, efficacy, and internal dosimetry of targeted radio labeled agents (including antibodies, peptides, oligonucleotides, liposomes, and nanoparticles).

Shared Interests and Overlaps

There are shared interests with Mechanisms of Cancer Therapeutics-B (MCTB) in molecular and cellular mechanism of cancer therapy. Applications that focus on the effects of anti-neoplastic agents on tumor cell anabolic and catabolic processes (DNA damage/repair and gene regulation cell cycle and checkpoint control, apoptotic and non-apoptotic cell death) may be reviewed in MCTB.   Applications that focus on DNA damage and other effects of radiation therapy may be reviewed in RTB.  

There are shared interests with Clinical Oncology (CONC) in the area of radiation therapy. Applications that focus on cancer clinical trials using radiopharmaceuticals or radiotherapy in combination therapy may be reviewed in CONC.Applications that focus on therapeutic interactions of ionizing radiation, radionuclides, electromagnetic radiation, and heat at the molecular, cellular, organ and patient levels may be reviewed in RTB. 

There are shared interests with Cellular Immunotherapy of Cancer (CIC) in the areas of neural and brain tumors. Applications studying the immunopathology and immunotherapy of central nervous system tumors (glioma, medulloblastoma, etc.) may be reviewed in either CNBT or CIC (if focus is on cellular therapies). Applications focused on immunological aspects of neural tissues and diseases unrelated to tumors may be reviewed in CNBT.

There are shared interests with Medical Imaging (MEDI) . Applications with focus on the evaluation of imaging methodologies and Image-guided interventions may be assigned to MEDI. Applications with focus on the imaging and image analysis as it relates to targeting of radiation and assessment of therapeutic response may be assigned to RTB.

There are shared interests with Biomedical Imaging Technology A (BMIT-A) and Biomedical Imaging Technology (BMIT-B). Applications with emphasis on the development of image-based methods and strategies may be assigned to BMIT-A and BMIT-B . Applications with focus on image-guided therapy and other imaging and image analysis associated with targeting of radiation and response assessment may be assigned to RTB.

There are shared interests with Clinical Molecular Imaging and Probe Development (CMIP) . Applications with focus on the development of targeted molecular imaging agents may be assigned to CMIP. Applications with emphasis on radionuclides, radiochemistry, and feasibility studies to establish proof-of-principle of novel radiation therapeutics may be assigned to RTB.

There are shared interests in DNA damage/repair with Molecular Genetics (MG). Applications that emphasize investigations of mechanisms of DNA damage/repair and combination of radiation with novel agents, such as targeting growth factors, signaling pathways, DNA repair, and tumor angiogenesis, are reviewed in RTB. Applications that emphasize fundamental aspects of DNA repair with no direct studies of cancer are reviewed in MG. 

There are shared interests with Skin and Connective Tissue Science (SCTS) in studying molecular and cellular events leading to UV-induced skin photobiology and carcinogenesis. Applications that focus on UV-induced photobiology of the skin and cellular factors and signaling pathways in keratinocytes and melanocytes may be reviewed in SCTS. Applications that focus on UV-induced skin carcinoma and melanoma development may be reviewed in RTB.