Magdalena Bazalova-Carter, PhD

TH- Brachytherapy

To compare digital coincidence detection (DCD) with analog charge summation (ACS) for a cadmium zinc telluride (CZT) photon counting detector (PCD) and evaluate the impact on spatial resolution in PCD computed tomography (CT) as a function of imaging beam ene...

While CT imaging has advanced with improved machine design, further diagnostic information can be achieved by enhancing sensitivity to high-Z therapeutic agents. Current photon-counting CT (PCCT) k-edge imaging sensitivity is limited by spectral overlap betwe...

To evaluate image quality for the Kilovoltage Optimized AcceLerator Adaptive radiotherapy (KOALA) system, a dual-robot cone-beam CT (CBCT) imaging and radiotherapy device.

KOALA (Kilovoltage Optimized for AcceLerator Adaptive therapy) is a low-cost adaptive radiotherapy device designed for use in resource-limited settings. KOALA includes cone-beam CT (CBCT) imaging characterized by scatter artifacts and unreliable HU values tha...

To experimentally characterize low-energy helium-4 (⁴He⁺) ion beams at subclinical energies (0.5–1.5 MeV/u) at the newly commissioned ASPIRE facility at TRIUMF using radiochromic film dosimetry, and to validate the measured dose distributions through Monte Ca...

To evaluate the feasibility of delivering minibeam spatially fractionated radiation therapy (SFRT) using a novel, low-cost, dual-robot system, the Kilovoltage Optimized AcceLerator for Adaptive therapy (KOALA).

To optimize a N-Isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM)-based polymer gel dosimeter for kilovoltage x-ray irradiations, and to demonstrate its application for 3D isocenter verification.

To evaluate and compare double-scattered 3D conformal (DS 3D-CRT) and pencil beam scanning (PBS) for ultra-high dose rate (UHDR) very high energy electron (VHEE) radiotherapy.

Therapy Physics

To develop FAST-X to deliver ultra-high dose-rate (UHDR) irradiation for complex cranial targets.

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is the clinical standard for bone mineral density assessment but is constrained by energy-integrating detectors. This study investigates the feasibility of DXA imaging using a benchtop photon-counting detector (PCD).

To develop a fast TPS for the dual-robot Kilovoltage Optimized Adaptive Radiotherapy (KOALA) system utilizing a 225-kVp x-ray beam and iris collimation.

Therapy Physics

Very-high-energy electron (VHEE) radiotherapy is an emerging modality that currently lacks established dosimetric verification protocols, motivating the development of real-time treatment monitoring methods. This work investigates the potential for positron e...