2025 Department News
2026 Physician of the Year Award
November 24, 2025
Please join us in congratulating Quynh Le, MD, FACR, FASTRO, our department chair, for receiving the Stanford Health Care 2026 Physician of the Year Award!
This recognition serves as a well-deserved testament to Dr. Le’s exceptional dedication to embodying the core values of professionalism, excellence, and innovation in her practice. Quynh will be honored with other award recipients at the Annual Medical Staff Appreciation and Awards Gala. Congratulations, Quynh, from all of us at Stanford Radiation Oncology!
John Yuhas and Lecture Award
November 1, 2025
Please join us in congratulating Max Diehn, MD, PhD, for receiving the 2025 John Yuhas Award and Lecture from Penn Medicine! Dr. Diehn will be giving the award lecture on November 5th at the University of Pennsylvania. This award honors the memory of John M. Yuhas, PhD, who joined Penn’s Radiation Oncology department in 1980 and was developing a research laboratory when he died in 1984.
The award/lecture series recognizes outstanding research in the fields of radiation oncology, radiation biology, DNA repair, carcinogenesis, and related areas. Congratulations, Dr. Diehn!
HBMC-RISE Award
October 29, 2025
Congratulations to Wilson Mai, MD, PhD, for receiving the 2025 HBMC-Recognizing Individuals for Support and Empowerment (RISE) Award! These awards celebrate faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, and residents who have exemplified exceptional mentorship for visiting medical students from Historically Black Medical Colleges (HBMC).
Insights from the Kalbasi Lab
October 22, 2025
The mission of the Kalbasi Lab, led by Anusha Kalbasi, MD, Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology, is to explore and manipulate the intricate connections between cancer and the immune system, aiming to build on the success of immunotherapy for patients with cancer.
Visiting Research Scholar Award
October 17, 2025
Cristabelle De Souza, PhD, Instructor of Radiation Oncology under the mentorship of Erinn Rankin, PhD, has received the Visiting Research Scholar Award from the France-Stanford Center for Interdisciplinary Studies!
Her project, “The Roles of CAFs in Regulating Immune Activity and Therapeutic Response Across Solid Tumors,” exemplifies a globally collaborative effort to redefine cancer treatment. Congratulations, Dr. De Souza!
A FLASH of Hope
October 4, 2025
Billy Loo featured in Stanford Momentum for his work with ultra-fast FLASH radiation therapy!
"In 2008, Billy Loo, Jr., MD PhD, was in a gondola over Mount Taishan in China’s Shandong province, where he was attending a conference. Suspended hundreds of feet above pine-covered cliffs and winding granite stairways, Loo turned to a colleague and shared an idea that had been percolating: What if you could deliver radiation to cancer patients in an instant?"
ASTRO Gold Medal Award
October 1, 2025
Please join us in congratulating our department chair, Quynh Le, MD, for receiving the 2025 American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Gold Medal Award. The ASTRO Gold Medal is reserved for individuals who have made truly extraordinary contributions to radiation oncology across multiple domains.
Dr. Le was awarded the Gold Medal during the ASTRO Annual Meeting Award Ceremony on September 30, 2025.
Our department held a special recognition for our department's Gold Medalists in San Francisco.
Transforming Treatment with BgRT
September 23, 2025
Stanford’s Department of Radiation Oncology is breaking new ground in cancer treatment with RefleXion's technology. This technology utilizes positron emission tomography (PET) imaging to deliver precise, targeted radiation therapy. Spearheaded by Lucas Vitzthum, MD, Clinical Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology, and Murat Surucu, PhD, Clinical Professor of Radiation Oncology and Chief of Clinical Physics, this approach allows for real-time tracking of tumors during treatment.
Clin-STAR Award
August 27, 2025
We are excited to share that Jason Ross, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology, has received the Clin-STAR Aging Research Development and Training Award! Aging Research Development and Training Awards support various activities to help prepare early career investigators for careers in aging-related research. Congratulations, Dr. Ross!
NIH MERIT R37 Award
August 6, 2025
We are thrilled to share that Everett Moding, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology, has received a Method to Extend Research in Time (MERIT) R37 Award from the National Institute of Health! This award is a long-term grant for investigators with outstanding research accomplishments and high productivity. Congratulations, Dr. Moding!
NIH Pathways to Independence Award
August 5, 2025
We are incredibly proud to announce that Yuyan Jiang, PhD, a postdoctoral scholar in our department, has received the NIH Pathways to Independence Award for her project
“Lysosome-targeting chimeras degrading immune checkpoint proteins to enhance immunoradiotherapy of head and neck cancer.” Congratulations, Dr. Jiang!
AAPM Arthur Boyer Award
July 31, 2025
We're proud to share that Dr. Nataliya Kovalchuk and the team behind the collaborative project “Large Scale Deployment of a Tailored and Hybrid Educational Strategy for Wartime Capacity Building” have received the 2025 AAPM Arthur Boyer Award for Innovation in Medical Physics Education! 🏅
Named in honor of Arthur Boyer, former Director of Radiation Physics at Stanford Radiation Oncology, the AAPM award celebrates educational innovation in medical physics—a mission we’re honored to continue.
This AAPM/HUG/UAMP year-long initiative supported Ukraine’s transition from Co-60 to IMRT through a comprehensive training program for medical physicists—combining virtual lectures, AI-assisted translation, and in-person practical sessions.
AVATAR's Global Impact
July 16, 2025
In the ever-evolving landscape of medical innovation, the Audio Video Assisted Therapeutic Ambiance for Radiotherapy (AVATAR) project has provided comfort and relief for pediatric patients undergoing radiotherapy. Launched as part of the Stanford Medicine Catalyst program in May 2024, AVATAR has quickly made a significant global impact by easing treatment sessions and minimizing the need for general anesthesia.
Read more about the amazing work being conducted by our own Susan Hiniker, Bill Loo, and Lawrie Skinner!
Welcome, Jason Sheltzer, PhD!
July 14, 2025
Please join us in welcoming Dr. Jason Sheltzer to our department!
Dr. Sheltzer comes to us from Yale, and will continue his research in our Division of Cancer Biology.
The Sheltzer Lab, which focuses on understanding the genetic changes that drive cancer progression and developmental disabilities, particularly through the study of aneuploidy—the gain or loss of whole chromosomes. The lab employs advanced technologies, including CRISPR/Cas9 mutagenesis and single-cell sequencing, to model aneuploidy and explore its cellular consequences.
Welcome, Beth Neilsen, MD, PhD!
July 14, 2025
Please join us in welcoming Dr. Beth Neilsen, Clinical Assistant Professor, to our department! She is a Clinical Assistant Professor in Radiation Oncology at Stanford University with a specific interest in leveraging computational approaches to further personalized cancer treatments through advancing our understanding of cancer evolution, particularly in response to radiation therapy.
2025 Class of AAPM Fellows
July 10, 2025
We are excited to share that Nataliya Kovalchuk, PhD, Clinical Professor of Radiation Oncology in the Division of Medical Physics, has been named Fellow of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM)! The Fellow designation honors members who have made significant contributions through service to AAPM, advancements in medical physics knowledge via original research or development, impactful educational activities in training medical physicists and allied health personnel, and leadership in the practice of medical physics.
Congratulations, Dr. Kovalchuk, on this well-deserved honor!
2025 Class of ASTRO Fellows
July 9, 2025
We are thrilled to announce that Kathleen Horst, MD, and Elizabeth Kidd, MD, have been named Fellows of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). The ASTRO Fellow designation, or FASTRO, honors members who have given significant volunteer service to the Society and contributed to the field of radiation oncology in the areas of research, education, patient care, or leadership. Please join us in congratulating Dr. Horst and Dr. Kidd for this incredible achievement.
We are proud to have such talented individuals in our community, and we look forward to their continued contributions to the field!
2025 ASTRO Mentorship Award
July 1, 2025
We are incredibly proud to announce that Iris Gibbs, MD, FASTRO, has received the 2025 American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Mentorship Award.
The ASTRO Mentorship Award recognizes mentors in radiation oncology who demonstrate outstanding commitment to the professional development of their mentees as clinicians, educators and researchers. Congratulations, Dr. Gibbs, on this wonderful achievement!
2025 Cancer Research Institute class of Lloyd J. Old STARs
June 13, 2025
We are thrilled to share that Anusha Kalbasi, MD, Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology, was named a member of the 2025 Cancer Research Institute (CRI) class of Lloyd J. Old STARs! Congratulations, Dr. Kalbasi!
Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance 2025 Mentored Investigator Grant
June 11, 2025
Congratulations to Cristabelle De Souza, Ph.D., Instructor of Radiation Oncology in the Division of Cancer Biology, for receiving the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance 2025 Mentored Investigator Grant! Her project, “Targeting SPP1 in the TME as a therapeutic strategy to chemosensitize ovarian tumors,” aims to improve response to therapy and increase overall survival by investigating the tumor microenvironment.
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Insights from the Rankin Lab
June 7, 2025
In its quest to improve cancer therapy and patient outcomes, the Rankin Lab is starting at the microscopic level, uncovering cancer’s molecular secrets and mechanisms. Read more about the amazing work happening in our Division of Cancer Biology!
2025 Graduate Medical Education Well-Being Award
June 4, 2025
We are delighted to announce that Agnes Ewongo, MD, MPH, was named a recipient of the 2025 Graduate Medical Education Well-Being Awards. This award honors residents and fellows who actively support trainee well-being, address systemic contributors to burnout, improve mental health access, and foster an inclusive and supportive learning environment. Congratulations, Dr. Ewongo!
Quynh-Thu Le receives ASTRO gold medal
May 21, 2025
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Quynh Le, MD, FACR, FASTRO, our department chair, as a 2025 ASTRO Gold Medal Recipient! The Gold Medal is ASTRO's highest honor bestowed on revered members who have made outstanding contributions to radiation oncology, including research, clinical care, teaching, and service. Recipients are drawn from any of the scientific disciplines represented by the Society's members.
Congratulations, Quynh, from all of us at Stanford Radiation Oncology!
Stanford leads the way in proton therapy
May 15, 2025
The Department of Radiation Oncology, led by Quynh-Thu Le, MD, the Katharine Dexter McCormick & Stanley McCormick Memorial Professor, continues to drive innovation in radiotherapy modalities, with a significant milestone in proton therapy. Our department has overseen the development of the world's first ultra-compact proton therapy system, a groundbreaking advancement made possible through a collaboration between Stanford and the technology company Mevion.