Educate the future generation of physicians and physician scientists in radiation oncology who are dedicated to the advancement of and improvement in the treatment of cancer.

Prepare residents for independent practice in any clinical or academic setting. Support and accommodate the individualization of training based on the resident’s future career plans. 

Educate residents as leaders in radiation oncology involved in the future direction of cancer research by supporting investigator-initiated research and the Holman Pathway.

The program should emphasize training Holman Pathway candidates, and clinicians to serve the state of Iowa and the Midwest.

Continue to seek out exceptional residents who show qualities of empathy, dedication to the field, excellent communication skills, professionalism, and self-motivation. Promote the development of sound clinical skills and medical knowledge.

• A varying number of residents are accepted each year depending on the number of positions available
• 7 total residents are ACGME approved for our training program
• Graduates are well prepared to work in academic institutions and/or community practices
• Over 25 departmental faculty members (including Radiation Oncology physicians, Medical Physicists, and Free Radical and Radiation Biologists) train and mentor our radiation oncology residents

Scheduling/Rotations

• Residents rotate several times with each physician faculty in specialized clinics ensuring that the breadth and depth of each disease site is covered
• Research rotations in the first and second year give residents dedicated time and resources to actively engage in research and produce/submit abstracts and manuscripts
• Pathways (16 weeks) allow for PGY4-5 residents to individualize their residency education and specialize in areas of interest within the field.

What procedures do you do in your clinic?

• We have incredibly strong physics support, which allows us to do a wide variety of special procedures. This list is probably incomplete, but here are some: low dose rate brachytherapy for prostate cancer, high dose rate brachytherapy for gynecologic cancers, intraoperative radiation therapy for breast cancer, stereotactic radiosurgery for intracranial lesions, frameless stereotactic radiotherapy, stereotactic body radiosurgery for liver and lung tumors, gated treatment delivery, conebeam CT for tumor localization, total body radiation therapy, and total skin radiation therapy.

Is there sufficient patient volume so that I can have multiple exposures to a variety of conditions?

• One of the strengths of our residency program is that we see a wide variety of cases. We are fortunate to work in an excellent hospital with strong programs in multiple disciplines, such as Otolaryngology, Neurosurgery, and Medical Oncology to name a few. These departments see patients from all over Eastern Iowa, and those patients are then subsequently referred to our department for radiation therapy. We typically have 60 – 90 patients under treatment at any time.

Do I have to rotate outside UI Hospitals & Clinics to fulfill requirements?

• There are enough brachytherapy and pediatric cases to fulfill requirements for board certification. If residents are interested in additional experience in these areas, outside rotations can be arranged.

What's the call schedule like?

• Residents take call several times throughout the year for 1 week. Occasionally, residents are needed to cover the clinic briefly on Saturday or Sunday mornings. Rarely, residents are called during the night to emergently treat a patient.

Do you have a research project requirement for graduation?

• Yes. Not only do we have a research project requirement, but we have a research curriculum in the first two years of residency that helps strengthen and promote research skills while giving residents dedicated time to focus on their projects. Our residents have been very successful and productive in their research efforts and have all been accepted to present a poster at our national specialty conference, ASTRO. Additionally, residents can choose a research pathway in their last two years if interested. See what research our residents are working on.

Are residents involved in any clinical trials/protocols?

• We encourage all residents to be involved in clinical trials. We try to tailor residency to a particular resident’s individual needs and interests. Residents who are interested in a career in academic Radiation Oncology will likely opt for our Research or Holman Pathways. Other residents interested in private practice will also have ongoing research projects, but will focus more on developing their expertise on our Clinical Pathway.

What's Iowa got that other programs don't?

• State-of-the-art technology
• Individualized, innovative and integrative curriculum
• Nationally and internationally recognized faculty leaders in the fields of Radiation Oncology, Medical Physics and Free Radical and Radiation Biology
• A dedicated Education Team as well as Clinical Research Team
• Iowa City is a highly intellectual community with premier arts events that are accessible to residents in terms of cost and location
• We have an outstanding school system for children in grades K-12
• A great training program and a high quality of life at an affordable price 
• Great benefits

In order to train future practitioners of radiation oncology, we provide a comprehensive educational experience that will expose residents to all aspects of radiation oncology. We have designed a curriculum that is innovative, individualized and integrative. The residency experience entails clinical rotations, didactics (graduate level courses and several weekly conferences and tumor boards) dedicated research time, and pathways that allow residents to specialize and focus on areas of interest within the specialty. Residents finish the program with a deep understanding of cancer including the biology, pathology, natural history, work-up and treatment approaches with radiation therapy, surgery and chemotherapy. Residents become competent in the delivery of radiation therapy including techniques of external beam radiotherapy as well as interstitial and intracavitary radiotherapy. Through a variety of experiences and resources available, residents become well prepared for their board examinations.

• See our four year overview of the curriculum and educational experience.

Radiation Oncology Clinical Service

In order to obtain the essential skills and knowledge, residents will spend a significant portion of their residency on the Radiation Oncology Clinical Services. Each physician faculty runs their own clinical service specializing in specific disease sites. Residents will rotate through each service at least three times throughout residency and potentially more if interested in a specific service/disease. Clinical rotations will vary in length each training year in order to meet the overall educational learning goals.

Department faculty clinical services include:

Selectives

These blocks are additional clinical experiences that are necessary to further enhance the understanding of Radiation Oncology.

• Radiology - An eight-week rotation that consists of a combined experience in Diagnostic Radiology, PET/Nuclear Medicine and Neuroradiology taken in PGY3
• Physics and Dosimetry - A designated 12-week block that focuses on the clinical integration of Radiation Oncology and Physics taken in PGY4

Clinical Experience Overview

Learning Goals:

• PGY2: Foundation and Exposure
• PGY3 - PGY4: In-depth Understanding/Learning, Increase Responsibility
• PGY5: Specialize/Focus and Autonomy

Research is a vital component of the residency program. A curriculum has been established to hone resident research skills and knowledge with ample research opportunities and resources while providing residents with dedicated, protected time for their clinical research. The department has a research team that serves as mentors and resources for residents. Protected research time is tailored to resident needs and interests and is most often arranged during PGY3-PGY5. Every resident is expected to have submitted a manuscript for publication by the end of residency.

Resident Research

Residents in our department have been very productive and successful with their research endeavors. Each resident has one or more abstract acceptances to national conferences and many have manuscript submissions.

Resident Research Showcase

We are very proud of our resident research efforts, and want to showcase their projects! The Annual Resident Research Showcase is held during the annual ISTRO meeting. This allows residents to present their posters to meeting participants while also giving them experience and feedback on their presentation and poster before they present at ASTRO.

PGY4-5 Research Opportunities

Some residents choose to continue their research endeavors more in-depth. Residents can select to do a Clinical Research Pathway or apply for the Holman Pathway for those who want a career as a physician investigator and are interested in basic science, clinical or translational research.

“The beauty of our clinical pathways, whether it be academics, research, or community medicine, is that they allow us to be well-rounded, competent clinicians while providing us the autonomy and initiative to fashion our unique niches in health care (medical education, innovation, public policy, global health, clinical trial initiation, etc.)."
-Sagar C. Patel, MD

In order to help residents meet the learning goal of focusing and specializing in areas of interest, residents will choose and/or develop a Pathway by mid-residency. Pathways are individualized learning experiences developed around specific areas that correlate to each resident’s personal career goals and interests. Approximately 16 weeks of residency will be devoted to a selected Pathway to be taken in PGY4 and PGY5. Currently, developed Pathways include, but certainly are not limited to:

• Clinical Research - Residents who develop a keen interest in clinical research after the first two years can continue their projects and further develop their skills
• Academic Medicine - Residents interested in pursuing an academic career i.e., in medical education, public health, etc. can work simultaneously on their Masters degrees in Medical Education or Public Health during residency.
• Clinical Medicine - Residents who want to focus more on their clinical skills and practice can choose the Clinical Medicine Pathway. Learning experiences will encompass more exposure and experience for specific procedures or disease sites and a variety of clinical Radiation Oncology experiences (i.e. community medicine rotations)

The Holman Pathway

“The Holman Pathway afforded me protected time to really focus on basic science research and provided me a foundation for a successful academic career as a physician-scientist.” 
–Darrion Mitchell, MD, PhD

The Holman Pathway presents an alternative residency structure for selected residents in Radiation Oncology. It’s a special training program available for residents who are planning a career in basic science or clinical research. Residents become eligible for board certification after 21 months of research and 27 months of clinical training.

Holman Pathway residents are required to meet the same minimum requirements for special procedures (interstitial and intracaviatry brachtherapy and unsealed sources) as well as pediatric cases. HP residents are not required to take the curriculum selectives (Radiology, Physics, and Dosimetry and the PGY3 Research Curriculum). Additionally, the clinical rotations will be designed to meet the HP resident needs.

Learn more about the Holman Pathway.

The field of Radiation Oncology is a highly academic specialty in which residents need to continually and consistently on their own, study the vast amount of content. For successful completion of the residency program, passing boards and effectively integrating knowledge into patient care – it is expected that each resident begins this independent study process from day one of residency. Residents will develop their own Learning Plan each year and will be monitored for progress by the Program Director semi-annually.

In addition to independent study, the program offers several exams annually to help prepare residents for boards. Residents are required to take and perform at an expected level for the following exams: In-Service, RAPHEX (physics), and Mock Orals. In-Service and RAPHEX exam scores allow residents to compare and gauge their performance nationally against their peers. The goal of mock oral exams is to simulate the actual board exam so residents are not only prepared for the medical knowledge but for the test-taking skill itself. Residents also have the opportunity to take the RABEX (radiation biology).

Both conferences and courses are offered on a continual basis that residents are required to attend in order to be exposed to the full spectrum of content in Radiation Oncology.

Residents have the opportunity to learn from faculty, guest speakers, and peers in a myriad of venues, including several departmental as well as interdisciplinary conferences and tumor boards on a weekly basis. Residents also develop excellent presentation and speaking skills by frequently giving lectures and honing their teaching efforts.

Clinical Case Conferences

Twice a week, residents and faculty present Case Conferences that pertain to specified disease sites and relevant patient cases. Residents present ½ hour, concise power point presentations on a disease site, while faculty facilitate discussion and present patient cases to engage all learners in this interactive learning session. Both residents and faculty come prepared to teach and learn! Topics are presented in a longitudinal curricular approach so residents are exposed to all topics throughout the year rather than one month at a time.

The following elements are included in each Case Conference pertaining to the disease site:

1. Work up, diagnosis and staging of the patient’s case
2. Treatment options
3. Particular radiation plan used to treat the patient
4. Review of relevant sentinel studies or literature supporting the use of radiation for the patient
5. Potential acute and long-term complications of the treatment
6. Prognosis and other expected outcomes
7. Relevant patient cases

Chart Rounds

Chart Rounds occur once a week and focus on our clinic patients starting treatment. Residents briefly present the patient’s diagnosis, stage, brief history, and a description of the treatment plan. Input is provided from faculty, physicists, dosimetrists, and staff.

Residents become very familiar with the patient’s treatment plan by displaying and describing relevant treatment fields and dosimetry, understanding how the GTVs, CTVs, and PTVs were constructed, and awareness of the goal doses to each PTV along with the doses to each dose-limiting structure.

Journal Club

Journal Club meets at least six times a year to focus on Practice-Based Learning and Improvement skills. The curriculum prepares residents to effectively investigate and evaluate their patient care practices, and appraise/ assimilate scientific evidence by utilizing an Evidence Based Medicine approach. Residents will increase their EBM skills, effectively be able to facilitate a Journal Club discussion and ultimately apply their knowledge to improve their own patient care.

Tumor Boards

Residents are required to attend specific disease-site Tumor Boards. Medical and allied professionals from a variety of departments attend tumor board conferences and focus on the interdisciplinary nature of patient care. The following Tumor Boards are scheduled 2-4 times a month.

• Melanoma
• Thoracic
• Sarcoma
• Lymphoma
• Gyn Onc
• Peds Onc
• Neuro-Path
• Genitourinary
• Head and Neck
• Breast
• Hepatic

Personal and Professional Development Series

To help residents grow personally, professionally, and healthfully, the Department offers this series to cover a variety of issues relevant to a resident’s life, practice and health. Residents meet with a variety of in-house guest speakers and discuss topics listed below. Additionally, every other year the department sponsors a Resident Retreat that focuses on resident wellness, team building and special topic issues.

• Giving Bad News
• Nursing Topics
• Impaired Residents/Faculty
• Billing and Coding
• Teaching Skills 
• Cultural Diversity
• Pain Management
• Interviewing/CVs
• Stress Management
• Palliative Care and Hospice
• Ethics
• Finances
• Leadership Skills

The residency curriculum includes teaching of basic sciences essential to training in radiation oncology, including radiation biology and Medical Physics. These courses are taught by our own medical physics and Free Radical and Radiation Biology faculty. Residents are relieved of all clinical duties during course meeting times. Courses are required and taken the first two years of residency. PGY4 and PGY5 residents have the option of repeating the courses to further their understanding and learning. Departmental courses offered include:

* Graduate level course

Radiation Oncology Center for Excellence

Since moving to our present location in 2008, the Center for Excellence in Image Guided Radiation Therapy has provided exceptional care to patients seen in our clinic. Through constant innovation we have provided our patients access to the best imaging modalities and state-of-the-art treatments.

Patients benefit from being imaged on a 3T MRI, PET-CT and cone-beam CT before treatment. State-of-the-art treatments and devices including IORT, SBRT, HDR-brachytherapy, 4-D gating, TSE therapy, and MR-Linac complement the more traditional treatments available using linear accelerators.

Our staff are devoted to the patients they care for, which is evident in the highest patient satisfaction ratings within the hospital unit. Each is committed to improving patient care through education, research and a "patient-first" ethos.

• Learn more about the Radiation Oncology Center for Excellence.

Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center

The Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center is the only National Cancer Institute (NCI) accredited cancer center in the state of Iowa designated as "comprehensive". This is a five-year designation (2011). A truly interdisciplinary Clinic means that patients may be seen by physicians of several specialties during the same appointment. The space occupied by the Clinic includes a pharmacy and a laboratory as well as ample provision for families accompanying their loved ones to treatment.

• Learn more about the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The Radiation Oncology Residency Program at UI Hospitals & Clinics is accredited by the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). Information specific to program requirements for a radiation oncology training program may be found at the ACGME.

The American Board of Radiology (ABR) conducts initial qualifying and certifying examinations to ascertain the qualifications of those who have completed training in radiation oncology. Information regarding ABR Certification is available on the board's website.

Applications will be accepted through October 15 for PGY2 positions. Applicants are responsible for applying for transitional year residency separately. 

The Department of Radiation Oncology encourages couples match applications. If an applicant is selected to interview with us, we will work in conjunction with the corresponding department to attempt to streamline interview dates and times for both applications. More information on couples matching can be found on the NRMP website.

Dates

Our program will be recruiting two PGY-2 positions in ERAS 2025 season. Selected candidates will be notified of selection for an interview via Thalamus. Interviews will take place from November through January.

Sample Interview Schedule

Candidates can anticipate the interview day to span from 8am (CST) until 2pm (CST)

The interview day will begin with a forty-minute Informational Presentation, led by Residency Program Director, Kristin Plichta, MD and Department Chair, Bryan Allen, MD commencing at roughly 8am (CST).

Following the introduction, candidates will have a short break, with an option to join a casual virtual waiting room.

Following breaks, interviews will commence in 20-minute panel style sessions composed of 2-3 faculty members in each treatment area (i.e., Head & Neck, Pediatrics, Breast, Gynecology, etc.), as well as individuals from our Med Physics team and Free Radical/Rad Biology teams.

Candidates will have 10 minutes to break in-between sessions (again, with an option to join the virtual waiting room).

All candidates will have a casual meeting with current residents over the lunch hour and commence with additional afternoon interview sessions

The interview day will end with a 30-minute Meet and Greet session with our Free Radical/Rad Biology Team, which will include information regarding research opportunities

It is the goal of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of Iowa to produce quality radiation oncologists who pursue either an academic or private practice career. To do this, we feel that it is necessary to choose high quality residents from the pool of applicants each year. Future residents are selected based on academic achievement, personal qualities, and the faculty's assessment of their potential to excel in the residency program. In general, most successful applicants are in the top third of their medical school class and graduate from LCGME schools that provide superior undergraduate medical education.

PGY5

Breann Bowar, MD (Co-Chief Resident)

Transitional Year: University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences - Grand Forks, ND
MD - Sanford School of Medicine - Vermillion, SD
BA (Biology) - Augustana University - Sioux Falls, SD

Qateeb Khan, MD (Co-Chief Resident)

Transitional Year: Saint Francis Hospital - Evanston, IL
MD - University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health - Madison, WI
BS (Biology and Environmental Science) - University of Wisconsin - Madison, WI

PGY3

Shri Kiriti Rajan, MD

Transitional Year: University of Texas Southwestern - Dallas, TX
MD - University of Alabama School of Medicine - Birmingham, AL
 

Uwajah Uzomah, MBBS

Transitional Year: Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center - Athens, GA
MD - University of Ibadan College of Medicine - Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
MPH - Harvard Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University - Boston, MA 

PGY2

Hebah Abudawaba, MBBS

Transitional Year: University of Iowa Department of Internal Medicine - Iowa City, IA
MBBS - Mu'tah University - Mu'tah, Karak Governorate, Jordan
 

Moses Evbuomwan, MD

Transitional Year: Campbell University - Buies Creek, NC
MD - Oakland University William Beaumont School Of Medicine - Auburn Hills, MI
MPH - University of Miami - Coral Gables, FL

Ashley Way, MD

Transitional Year: Baylor College of Medicine Dept of Surgery - Houston, TX
MD - Ross University School of Medicine  - Bridgetown, Barbados
MPH - Chamberlain University - Downers Grove, IL

Kristin Plichta, MD, PhD

Clinical Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology

Bryan Allen, MD, PhD

Associate Professor, Chair and DEO of Radiation Oncology

Ryan Flynn, PhD

Michelle Howard, PhD

Daniel Hyer, PhD

Joseph Modrick PhD

Emma Rickels,DMP

Andrew Shepard, PhD

Blake Smith, PhD

Jeffrey Snyder, MS

Joël St-Aubin PhD

Timothy Waldron, MS

Wenjun Yang, PhD

The University of Iowa is the only institution in the world to offer a graduate degree in Free Radical and Radiation Biology FRRBP. Emphasizing the multi-disciplinary nature of the program, students have access to 5 primary and 21 adjunct faculty covering a wide gamut of scientific endeavor. One of the central purposes of the FRRBP is to study the effects of radio response of cancer cells in order to improve the treatment of cancer.

Learn more about the Free Radical and Radiation Biology Program and faculty.

The Department of Radiation Oncology is committed to education and the development of the next generation of leaders in our field. To help accomplish our educational goals, continually improve and deliver the best residency education, a Residency Education Team has been created. Each member on this team has a complement area of expertise in graduate medical education.

Kristin Plichta, MD, PhD
Program Director
kristin-plichta@uiowa.edu

Shawn Reynolds
Interim Residency Program Coordinator
shawn-reynolds@uiowa.edu

Kristin Plichta, MD, PhD

Residency Program Director, Clinical Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology

Bryan Allen, MD, PhD

Associate Professor, Chair and DEO of Radiation Oncology

Quentin Adams, MD

Clinical Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology

Carryn Anderson, MD

Clinical Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology

John Buatti, MD

Professor of Radiation Oncology

James Byrne, MD, PhD

Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology

Joseph Caster, MD, PhD

Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology

Yousef Ismael, MD

Clinical Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology - Ottumwa Partner Site

Jessica Parkhurst, MD

Clinical Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology - Iowa City CTC Partner Site

William Rockey, MD, PHD

Clinical Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology - Burlington Partner Site

Mark Smith, MD

Clinical Professor of Radiation Oncology

Wenqing Sun, MD, PhD

Clinical Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology