School of Medicine

A new technique in development will produce quick and efficient radiation dosing.Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have developed a technique that makes radiation oncologists significantly faster at calculating radiation dosages for patients undergoing cancer treatment. The technique also provides a more carefully controlled dosage of radiation to cancerous cells that is less likely to damage nearby healthy tissues. The research team — led by Victor Wickerhauser, Ph.D., professor of mathematics in Arts & Sciences and Joseph O. Deasy, Ph.D., assistant professor of radiation oncology at the School of Medicine — has turned to a mathematical tool called wavelet analysis to calculate radiation dose distributions. The tool has helped speed up the dose calculations by a factor of two or more compared to the standard dose calculation technique.

WrightIt’s common knowledge that minor aches and pains can be treated by applying cold or heat, but knowing how and when to use these treatments can be tricky, according to Rick W. Wright, M.D., instructor of orthopaedic surgery and sports medicine physician at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Wright, who serves as a team physician for the several St. Louis area professional sports teams, offers some advice on proper use of hot and cold therapies in an article published recently in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Researchers’ findings offer an explanation for recurrent urinary tract infections and why the body’s defenses or antibiotic treatments often don’t cure them.

Washington University is among 15 universities across the country selected by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation of Kansas City, Mo., to participate in its “Kauffman Campuses Initiative,” a new program aimed at making entrepreneurship education a common and accessible opportunity campus-wide. The Kauffman program builds on an emerging trend at colleges and universities — expanding […]

Good science requires knowing when to drop bad ideas, explains Michael M. Mueckler, Ph.D., professor of cell biology and physiology. “You may have worked on something for two or three years,” he says. “But at some point, you have to look at the long series of results, use the data to evaluate your original hypothesis […]

Researchers at the University’s Genome Sequencing Center found that the human Y chromosome carries many duplicate genes.

Steven E. Petersen is congratulated by Chancellor Mark Wrighton and William A. Peck.Steven E. Petersen, a pioneering brain imaging researcher, is the first James S. McDonnell Professor in Cognitive Neuroscience.

Ralph S. Quatrano will serve as co-chair until June 30, 2005, at which point he will take over as chair of the division.

Ralph G. Dacey Jr. has been named this year’s recipient of the prestigious Grass Foundation Award from the Society of Neurological Surgeons.

School of Medicine Employee Appreciation Day Picnic held June 13.