Brachytherapy for Cervix and Breast Cancer

J Joanne Alfieri is an associate professor in the Department of Oncology, McGill University since February 2012. She is a radiation oncologist who specializes in the treatment of gynaecological and gastrointestinal malignancies at the McGill University Health Centre. Dr. Alfieri earned her medical degree and her post-graduate radiation oncology training at McGill. She completed a Post-graduate Fellowship in Gynaecology Oncology and MRI-guided Brachytherapy at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia.  Dr. Alfieri is the lead for the gynecological site group as well as the brachytherapy lead for the MUHC. She initiated the MRI-guided brachytherapy program at McGill, and her current research interests lie in the evaluation of this program with the aim of improving the long-term outcomes and minimizing treatment-related toxicity in gynaecological cancer patients as well as in investigating alternate treatment options for locally advanced cervix cancer.  She has a keen interest in medical education and is the post-graduate residency training Program Director for radiation oncology since February 2015 as well as Associate Chair (Education) for the Gerald Bronfman Department of Oncology of McGill University where oversees undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate training programs in medical, surgical and radiation oncology. Merci!      

Dr Batchelar did her PhD in x-ray imaging at the Robarts Research Institute, Western University. She then did a residency in clinical physics at the London Regional Cancer Program and worked there and at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre before moving to BC Cancer’s Kelowna centre in 2010. She has specialized in brachytherapy for her whole career and is currently the lead physicist for brachytherapy at Kelowna.

David is a Radiation Oncologist at London Health Sciences Centre and Associate Professor at Western University.  Originally from Hamilton, Ontario, he obtained his MD from the University of Toronto and completed his residency at McMaster University.  He went on to a fellowship in Brachytherapy at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York. His current areas of focus include malignancies of the gynecologic tract, prostate, skin and sarcomas.  He has clinical and research interests in advanced brachytherapy techniques including using 3D imaging.  He is the Principal Investigator for the NRG Oncology Group in London.  He is past Chair of the Ontario Association of Radiation Oncologists and the OMA Section Chair for Radiation Oncology.  Other duties include co-Chair of the Gynecologic Radiation Oncology Communities of Practice and a member of the Gynecology Oncology Organizational Guideline Expert Panel for Cancer Care Ontario. Outside of work, he is involved with his three daughters’ activities, playing music (organ and piano) and running with more than 20 marathons under his belt.

Mrs David obtained her Masters’ degree in Medical physics from Université de Dijon  in France in 1996. In 1998 she decided to move to Montreal. She is currently active  as a medical physicist  at Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal, where she participated in the commissioning of linear accelerators and Tomotherapy . In collaboration with Maryse Mondat  She was actively involved in the development of the brachytherapy quality assurance program.  

Dr Derashodian is a radiation oncologist working at BC Cancer Kelowna. Centre Intégré de Cancérologie de la Montérégie, at Charles LeMoyne hospital. She graduated from Université de Montreal’s medical school in 2005. She then completed her residency in radiation oncology at Université Laval. She pursued her academic training at University of Miami with a fellowship in Urologic cancers under the supervision of Dr Alan Pollack. She then started her practice at Centre Intégré de Cancérologie de la Montérégie, at Charles LeMoyne hospital, and gained expertise in general brachytherapy.  Her main areas of expertise include urologic, gynecologic, and skin cancer, as well as general brachytherapy.

Shirin A. Enger is a tenured associate professor at Gerald Bronfman Department of Oncology, McGill University, and Canada research chair in medical physics. Her main research interest is brachytherapy with an overall aim to enable patient-specific brachytherapy dose planning and delivery. She leads a research group with focus on novel brachytherapy technology. Dr. Enger completed her PhD at Uppsala University, Sweden in 2008, and her postdoctoral fellowship at Université Laval, Quebec, Canada during 2009 to 2011. During 2012 to 2014 she held a position as assistant professor in Medical Physics at Uppsala University prior moving to Montreal and her current position at McGill University.

With an MD degree from the Université de Montréal, Dr. Marjory Jolicoeur founded Curietherapies in 2012, a non-profit organization that she still presides over today. A renowned radiation oncologist, she did her residency at Université de Montreal in 1996, before completing a brachytherapy fellowship at the Centre Georges-François Leclerc located in Dijon (France). In 1997, she started working at the department of Radiation Oncology of Université de Montréal, where she still teaches. A mere two years later, she was appointed medical consultant for all planning, construction and equipment selection processes of the new Radiation Oncology department of Hospital Charles-Le Moyne. She innovates by equipping the department with a suite and a comprehensive image-guided brachytherapy program. As a brachytherapy specialist, she has special research interests in its application to pathologies such as breast, genitourinary and gynecologic cancers. Her main focus is on the development of image guided implant procedures, the use of MRI in brachytherapy and the precision delivery of conformal high dose rate brachytherapy. She also teaches brachytherapy nationally and internationally. 

Eric Leung is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto and a Clinician-Investigator in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Sunnybrook Odette Cancer Centre. He is originally from Saint John New Brunswick and graduated from medical school at the Memorial University of Newfoundland.  He completed his residency and fellowship training at U of T and specializes in interstitial and MR-guided brachytherapy.  Dr. Leung has an interest in cervical cancer clinical trials and is a member of the Cervix Core Committee at NRG Oncology and the Cervix Executive Committee at CCTG. His other academic interests include translational studies in cervix cancer including metabolic imaging for patients with locally advanced gynecological tumours. 

Annabelle Marsan is a sexologist in oncology and a psychotherapist. She obtained her bachelor's degree followed by a master's degree in sexology in 2013 at Université du Québec à Montreal. She specializes in sexological interventions in patients affected from cancer and their partners. She works at Centre Intégré de Cancerologie de la Montérégie-Centre de l'Hôpital Charles Lemoyne à Greenfield Park. She is also a Professional Affairs Officer at the Ordre Professionnel des Sexologues du Québec.

Alvaro A. Martinez, M.D. received his medical degree from Universidad Javeriana in Bogota, Colombia. He completed a radiation oncology residency program at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. Following his residency, he became an Assistant Professor at Stanford University Medical School in Palo Alto, California. In 1981, he joined the department of Oncology at Mayo Clinic Medical School in Rochester, Minnesota where he achieved the position of Associate Professor. He was appointed Chairman of the department of Radiation Oncology at Beaumont Hospital Royal Oak, Michigan in 1985 where he was a Professor of Radiation Oncology at Oakland University William Beaumont Medical school. For the past five years, he has been a Senior VP of Scientific and Clinical Strategy at 21st Century Oncology of Michigan, a division of Michigan Health care professionals. Taking advantage of his surgical training, Dr. Martinez achieved outstanding expertise in brachytherapy and he designed special applicators which are widely used for the treatment of patients with gynecological and other pelvic malignancies. He is a member of numerous national and international professional organizations and is highly regarded by his peers for his professional accomplishments. He was president of the Michigan Society of Therapeutic Radiology in 1989 and president of the American Brachytherapy Society in 1991. Dr. Martinez is certified in radiation oncology by the American Board of Radiology and was awarded a fellowship in the American College of Radiology. Dr. Martinez has been a member of several National Cancer Institute review committees. He has been an associate editor for many national and international medical journals, and has contributed to more than 340 articles in prestigious scientific medical journals. In additional, he has written and contributed to more than 45 chapters in textbooks.

Thu Van Nguyen Huynh est radio-oncologue et travaille à Hôpital Charles Lemoyne depuis 2013.  Après son fellow en gynécologie-curiethérapie HDR à Madison au Wisconsin, elle a passé 15 ans au sein de l’équipe du à collaborer avec le groupe de gynécologie-oncologie et d’urologie-oncologique, en plus de contribuer à la formation des résidents du programme de radio-oncologie de l’Université de Montréal.  Ses intérêts demeurent les cancers gynécologiques/urologiques, la curiethérapie gynécologique et le bien-être du patient. Thu Van Nguyen Huynh is radiation oncologist working at Charles Lemoyne Hospital since 2013.  In 1997-98, she did a fellow in gynecology/HDR brachytherapy in Madison, Wisconsin then was attending physician for 15 years at the Centre Hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal (CHUM).  She contributed to the radiation oncology program and to teach a generation of residents at the University of Montreal program.  Her main interests are urologic/gynecologic cancers, gynecologic brachytherapy and the aim of patient welfare.

HARVARD UNIVERSITY, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA July 2005-June 2006 Abdominal Imaging and Intervention Fellowship McGILL UNIVERSITY, Montreal, Canada July 2000-June 2005 Radiology Residency UNIVERSITY OF MONTREAL, Montreal, Canada Sept. 1995-May 2000 Doctor in Medicine EDOUARD-MONTEPETIT CEGEP, Longueuil, Canada Sept. 1993-May 1995 “Diplôme d'études collégiales en sciences” HOSPITAL APPOINTMENTS • Sir Mortimer B. Davis – Jewish General Hospital – Montréal, Québec July 2006 - present o Staff Radiologist ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS • Resident coordinator, Jewish General Hospital July 2011 - present • Assistant Professor of Radiology, McGill University July 2006 - present • Chief Fellow, Brigham and Women’s Hospital April 2006-June 2006 • Academic Chief Resident, McGill University July 2004-June 2005 • Assistant Chief Resident, McGill University July 2002-June 2003

Dr. Portelance is a Professor, Vice-chair and Clinic Division Chief of the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center Radiation Oncology Department, Miller School of Medicine. She has more than 20 years of experience in the management of women with gynecological cancer. In recognition of her contribution to the field, she received the prestigious Fellow of the American Society of Radiation Oncology (FASTRO) award in 2018. She serves as a board member of many national committees including the NRG cervix committee and the American Radium Society Gynecology Appropriate Use Criteria committee. She was co-principal investigator of RTOG 0418, a national collaborative group clinical trial which has established the role of pelvic intensity modulated radiation therapy in the management of women with gynecological cancer. Her main research interest is to continue to develop treatment techniques to improve tumor control and reduce radiation toxicity using online adaptive magnetic resonance image guided radiation therapy (MR-g RT) combined with MR-g brachytherapy.

Dre. Marie-Lynn Racine has completed her residency in Radiation Oncology at the Université de Montréal. She has completed a first Fellowship in Brachytherapy at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital affiliated with the Harvard Medical School in Boston and a second Fellowship at the Centre Alexis-Vautrin in Nancy. She is currently working at the Hôpital Charles Lemoyne on the south shore of Montréal.

Vanessa Samouelian is a gynecologic oncologist at CHUM since 2011. She completed her residency, and PhD at Lille (France) before coming to Montreal and complete a fellowship in gynecoligoc oncology at the University of Montreal. Apart from gynecologic oncology, she is involved in research for cervical cancer, as well as perioperative care.

Dr Simon competed her medical degree and surgical residency at Université de Montreal in 1989. She fist specialized in cardiac reanimation, intesive care, and digestive surgery. Later in her career, she specialized in breast cancer, which she had been treating for more than ten years, and exclusively for the past 4 years.  Her realizations include the developpement of the CRID at Charles LeMoyne Hospital as well as its becoming a supraregional referral center for breast cancer. 

Dr Souhami received his medical degree from Escola de Medicina e Cirurgia in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1972. He subsequently undertook post-graduate training at State University of New York at Stony Brook, and completed his residency in internal medicine at Memorial University, St. John’s, Newfoundland. Dr. Souhami completed his residency in radiation oncology at Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, Ontario in 1979, and subsequently served as Visiting Fellow (Radiation Oncology) at M.D. Anderson Hospital and Cancer Institute, Houston, Texas.  After his residency in radiation oncology, he returned to his native country in Brazil and worked for seven years at the National Cancer Institute in Rio de Janeiro where he became chairman of the Department of Radiation Oncology. In 1987 he moved to McGill University in Montreal and was the Associate Director of that department for 19 years. Currently is a Professor in the Department of Oncology, Division of Radiation Oncology.  Dr. Souhami has been an invited speaker at numerous congresses across North America and worldwide and has more than 200 peer-reviewed publications, several books chapters and two textbooks to his credit. He serves on the editorial boards of several peer-reviewed journals and is a member of many professional organizations. Dr. Souhami’s current research interests include the combined use of chemotherapy and radiotherapy in cancer, stereotactic radiosurgery, genito-urinary, gynecologic and central nervous system malignancies.

After obtaining an MSc in physics at Université Laval in 2009, Dany worked in Quebec’s health system before obtaining his MSc in Medical Physics in 2015 at Université de Montréal.  Since then, he’s working at Hopital Charles-LeMoyne in the Radio-Oncology department.  His fields of expertise are Brachytherapy, TomoTherapy, and Machine QA.

Dr. Michael Yassa is an Assistant Professor at the University of Montreal and Radiation Oncologist at Hôpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont, a University of Montreal affiliated center. He obtained his medical degree from McGill University, completed his residency in radiation oncology at the University of Montreal and his fellowship training at Hôpital Européen Georges Pompidouin Paris, France.  Dr Yassa’s practice and research focuses mainly on radiation treatments for breast and prostate cancer with emphasis on alternative methods of delivering radiation to improve quality of care and quality of life. He has co-authored over 30 scientific articles, abstracts and book chapters. He has peer-reviewed articles for the Chinese Clinical Oncology, Cancer Epidimiology and the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics.