Download MHS-07428 Senior Research Fellow Further Particulars

THE UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER
PARTICULARS OF APPOINTMENT
FACULTY OF MEDICAL & HUMAN SCIENCES
INSTITUTE OF CANCER SCIENCES
CENTRE FOR RADIOTHERAPY RELATED RESEARCH
SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW IN PLANNING SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT
Vacancy ref: M&HS-07428
Salary:
£49,230 - £58,754 per annum
Hours:
1.0 FTE
Duration:
Fixed term, 3 years
Location:
Oxford Road, Manchester
Responsible to:
Tim Illidge
____________________________________________________________________________
Enquiries about the application process:
Louise Crow
Email: [email protected]
Tel: 0161 306 0832
Enquiries about the vacancy, shortlisting and interviews:
Professor Marcel van Herk
Email: [email protected]
____________________________________________________________________________
SUMMARY
This is an outstanding opportunity for a new appointment for a Senior Research Fellow in
Planning System Development within the Institute of Cancer Sciences at The University of
Manchester to work on advanced planning systems development, in particular on the
development of probabilistic planning for photon and proton therapy.
Your appointment as Senior Research Fellow forms part of a global recruitment drive to bring
some of the world’s leading cancer experts and their teams to Manchester. Jointly funded by the
University and The Christie, this represents an exciting opportunity for Manchester to recruit
some of the best international research talent in screening and prevention, personalised cancer
therapy, radiotherapy related research, lung cancer, melanoma, women's cancers and
haematological oncology.
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The University of Manchester is the largest single-site university in the UK with an ambition to be
in the top 25 universities worldwide; The Christie is the biggest specialised cancer treatment
centre in Europe treating over 40,000 patients a year and the first designated comprehensive
cancer centre in the UK. These combined strengths have been harnessed through development
of a common strategic vision and an investment plan that capitalises on the enormous potential
to translate research into the clinic.
You will play a key role in the development of novel planning system algorithms taking into
account geometrical and biological uncertainties in the planning process. Eventually, these
systems need to be validated through clinical trials.
You will be part of the new Radiotherapy Physics Research Group in the Institute of Cancer
Sciences that works to improve the precision of radiotherapy in clinical practice. You will also
work closely with members of the Radiotherapy Related Research group in the Institute of
Cancer Sciences and have an honorary appointment in the Christie Medical Physics &
Engineering group.
You will have expertise in radiotherapy physics, in particular with treatment planning,
geometrical uncertainties and/or outcome modelling and have a proven track record
demonstrated through publications and grant income.
Contents
Page
A) Proposed Appointment
3
B) Details of Appointment
3
C) Person Specification
4
D) Facilities Related to the Appointment
6
E) The University of Manchester
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F) The Christie NHS Foundation Trust
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A)
Proposed Appointment
This newly created Senior Research Fellow post will be based within The Christie NHS
Foundation Trust and will be integrated with the Radiotherapy Related Research (RRR) group
and Christie Medical Physics and Engineering (CMPE).
You will play a key role in the development of advanced radiotherapy planning systems, in
particular probabilistic planning, i.e., understanding and quantifying uncertainties in the entire
radiotherapy chain and taking them into account in the plan optimization process. The new
techniques will play an essential role in planning for conventional photon therapy, MR-guided
therapy, and proton radiotherapy.
You will be expected to develop a programme of international leading radiotherapy
research for a group including post-doctoral scientists and research students and develop
local and international collaborations with scientific, clinical and commercial partners.
B)
Details of Appointment
Research
• Conduct research of international quality and publish it in peer reviewed high impact
journals of national/international standing.
•
Lead and/or contribute to successful bids for substantial external funding.
•
Assist with the development of a programme of radiotherapy physics research in the
Radiotherapy Related Research (RRR) Centre of the Institute of Cancer Sciences.
•
Develop productive research collaborations with other groups at The Christie Hospital
and the University.
•
Develop productive national and international research collaborations and partnerships.
•
Attract, supervise and support postgraduate research students at Masters and Doctoral
level.
•
Work closely with academic radiation oncologists and clinical oncologists.
•
Develop radiotherapy clinical trials to validate the new methodology.
Academic Leadership
• Provide academic leadership and strategic direction in advanced treatment planning for
radiotherapy.
•
To pursue excellence in teaching and research and to inspire others to do the same.
•
Lead and participate in internal and external networks to foster collaboration and to
promote The University of Manchester nationally and internationally.
•
Liaise with software developers, the proton research group, biologists, pathologists and
commercial partners in the development of new projects.
Education
• Promote excellence in teaching and learning and directly teach and mentor students.
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•
Provide academic leadership and innovation in teaching and learning.
•
Contribute to leadership and coordination of quality assurance and enhancement
activities and preparations for review by external agencies.
•
Teach and assess undergraduate and postgraduate students as required.
•
Contribute to the planning and delivery of lectures, seminars, workshops and short
courses.
Management
• Participate as a full member of the Institute of Cancer Sciences through Institute
activities, meetings, events etc.
C)
•
Contribute to the Institute of Cancer Sciences’ strategy documents.
•
Manage collaborative multidisciplinary research with the professions allied to
radiotherapy, the public sector, industry and the community compatible with the
University’s external affairs agenda.
•
Support the Institute of Cancer Sciences Director by undertaking delegated
administrative responsibilities and other duties, following consultation.
•
Advise upon and contribute to the development of academic staff in areas of research,
teaching and publications.
•
Provide academic leadership, development, mentoring and career management for junior
colleagues.
Person Specification
REQUIREMENTS
Qualifications
ESSENTIAL
DESIRABLE
Training & Experience
Evidence of wide
experience and training in
radiotherapy and in
particular treatment planning
PhD (or equivalent)
Computing experience
Demonstrated interest and
experience
teaching/education
Evidence of ability to play a
leadership role in teaching,
education and mentorship
Project management skills
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Experience of teaching
undergraduate/
postgraduate trainees
State registered clinical
Scientist
Experience
in
treatment
in planning
and/or
image
processing
software
development
Experience and/or interest in
geometrical uncertainties in
radiotherapy
including
delineation
variation,
radiobiology, pathology, and
data mining
Academic/research
achievements
Radiotherapy and medical
physics research experience
Recipient of research award
or prize
Evidence of ability to
provide academic leadership
Ability to progress to having
an
international
research
profile
Ability to apply for, and
proven success in, being
awarded peer reviewed
grant income
Recent articles in peer
reviewed publications
The ability to initiate,
design
and
supervise
radiotherapy research
Ability to communicate and
collaborate effectively with
colleagues in other
disciplines
Ability to manage research
projects
Ability to supervise
postgraduate research
students and assistants
Personal Skills
Evidence of ongoing
national/ international
research collaboration
Leadership and people
management skills, with
the ability to motivate all
levels of staff
Demonstrable
skills
interpersonal
5
Evidence of excellent written
and oral
communication skills
Flexible approach to work
The ability to work as part
of a multi-disciplinary team
Good time management
skills, with the ability to
prioritise and handle
competing demands
D)
Facilities related to the appointment
You will be based within Radiotherapy Related Research which comprises the membership of
the Radiation Related Research (RRR) group, which was established in 2007 by the Manchester
Cancer Research Centre (MCRC). The group was formed to maximise the opportunities of
radiotherapy research in Manchester and to help develop an internationally leading research
group. RRR is undertaken by research groups throughout the MCRC to support basic,
translational and clinical research organised into research areas with a common remit to the
development, behaviour and response to radiation treatment:
•
•
•
•
•
E)
Pre-clinical radiobiology
Translational radiobiology
Clinical oncology and translational research
Technical radiotherapy
Proton therapy
The University of Manchester
http://www.manchester.ac.uk/
The University of Manchester is Britain’s largest and most popular university, with a
distinguished history of academic achievement and an ambitious agenda for the future. The
University, with income in excess of £780M, has four Nobel Prize winners amongst its current
academic staff, and has embarked on an exciting and bold course which aims to make us one of
the top 25 universities in the world, as set out in the University’s strategic vision for 2020:
Strategic Vision 2020.
The University of Manchester was created in 2004 through the merger of The Victoria University
of Manchester and UMIST. It has an excellent track record in research, as demonstrated by the
award of two Nobel prizes in physics in 2010. The University’s research strategy can be found
here: UoM Research Strategy.
The academic structure of The University of Manchester is made up of Faculties and Schools.
There are four Faculties and further information about each Faculty and its related Schools can
be found here: UoM Faculties and Schools.
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In the last few years, the University has spent more than £400M transforming the campus and
building a world-class environment for outstanding scholars, teachers and internationally
acclaimed research teams. This is the largest investment ever seen in UK higher education
history. A further £250M investment by 2015 will bring the total spend to more than £650M.
The University of Manchester developed the £26M Wolfson Molecular Imaging Centre on the
Christie site. It has a dedicated cyclotron, plus preclinical and clinical PET scanning capability
and Magnetic Resonance (MR) imaging.
Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences
www.mhs.manchester.ac.uk
The Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences is a leading international centre for research and
education in medicine and a spectrum of health-related professions including nursing, midwifery,
social work, pharmacy, dentistry, psychology, audiology and speech and language therapy.
A major review in 2011/12 led to a new strategy and structure intended to enhance research and
teaching performance. A key component of the new approach is the creation of a matrix
structure linking five Faculty Schools with six Faculty Institutes. Details of the structure can be
found here: FMHS Structure.
The objective is to ensure that the Faculty achieves a major international academic profile in
each priority area within a period of five years and the strategy focuses research efforts in six
priority areas:
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•
•
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Human Development including Women’s and Children’s Health
Cardiovascular Sciences
Cancer Sciences
Inflammation and Repair
Brain, Behaviour and Mental Health
Population and Health Sciences
The Faculty has a total income of £210M, around 6,500 undergraduate students and 2,500
postgraduate students. It has strong relationships with outstanding NHS partners, which are
critical in achieving our mission.
Institute of Cancer Sciences
www.cancer.manchester.ac.uk
The Institute of Cancer Sciences is one of six Faculty Institutes within the Faculty of Medical and
Human Sciences. It comprises six research themed Centres: Haematological Oncology;
Paediatric, Teenage and Young Adult Cancer; Personalised Therapy; Radiotherapy Related
Research and Women’s Cancer. Research interests span from biomarker studies using clinical
proteomics and microarray analyses to clinical trials.
The present management team includes:
Prof Sir Salvador Moncada
Prof Tim Illidge
Prof Guy Makin
Institute Director
Centre Lead for Radiotherapy Related Research
Centre Lead for Paediatric, Teenage and Young Adult Cancer
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Prof Paul Townsend
Prof John Radford
Prof Gordon Jayson
Prof Michael Lisanti
Centre Lead for Personalised Therapy
Centre Lead for Haematological Oncology
Centre Lead for Women’s Cancer
Manchester Centre for Cellular Metabolism
There are 47 substantive academic members of staff within the Institute, including 28 academic
clinicians. The Institute of Cancer Sciences has a first rate publication record in high impact
medicine and cancer journals and has a significant research income from industry, research
councils and charities. The majority of Institute of Cancer Sciences researchers have laboratory
space in one of the University buildings on The Christie site, which provides a focus for cancer
research activity - combining an international reputation for cancer research with the largest
scale cancer clinical service in the UK.
Other activity in the Institute of Cancer Sciences is based either on the University’s Oxford Road
site or in key Manchester Academic Health Science Centre (MAHSC) partner sites at Central
Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and University Hospitals of South
Manchester NHS Foundation Trust. The large patient base found in Greater Manchester and
links to the research network provides major opportunities for the growth of clinical and
translational research, a key objective of the Trusts and the University. The Institute of Cancer
Sciences plays a key role in taking advantage of this opportunity to seamlessly link basic and
clinical science.
Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute
www.cruk.manchester.ac.uk
The Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute is a leading cancer research institute funded by
Cancer Research UK (CR-UK), the largest independent cancer research organisation in the
world. Research spans the whole spectrum of cancer research, from programmes investigating
the molecular and cellular basis of cancer, to those focused on translational research and the
development of novel therapeutic approaches and experimental pharmacology.
Currently the Institute contains multiple Cancer Research UK-funded basic science and
translational science research groups. The programmes span from basic science mechanisms of
cell proliferation through to the identification of new biomarkers for novel treatments.
The CR-UK Manchester Institute is located in the Paterson building and has excellent laboratory
facilities and outstanding core services, including microarrays, confocal microscopy,
bioinformatics, histology, and access to mass-spectrometry based proteomics. There is also a
biological resource unit with expertise in generating transgenic mice as well as tumour
implantation studies.
A Cancer Research UK funded Drug Discovery Unit was established at the CR-UK Manchester
Institute in 2009. Integrating medicinal, computational and synthetic chemistry with in vitro and
cellular biology, the Unit investigates novel drug discovery targets in an attempt to provide new
chemical entities for the treatment of unmet clinical needs in cancer patients. It has established
facilities to enable state-of-the-art biological and clinical target assessment and validation, small
molecule drug design and synthesis and the biological evaluation of the resultant compounds.
Manchester Academic Health Science Centre
www.mahsc.ac.uk
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The University, and in particular the Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences, is a key member
of the Manchester Academic Health Science Centre (MAHSC).
Formed in 2008, MAHSC is a Federation of Equal Partners enabled by a Company Limited by
Guarantee. The partners involved in the MAHSC are: The University of Manchester, Central
Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester Mental Health and Social
Care Trust, Salford Primary Care Trust (NHS Salford), Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, The
Christie NHS Foundation Trust and University Hospitals of South Manchester NHS Foundation
Trust.
MAHSC is one of only five Department of Health designated AHSCs in the UK. The designation
is a mark of excellence across research, innovation, education and patient service, and
recognition of the potential to excel in translational medicine. MAHSC’s vision is to be a leading
global centre for the delivery of innovative applied health research and education into
healthcare. As with other AHSCs, MAHSC has a dual role: to act as a beacon of international
excellence for the UK and to provide leadership and early adoption for our local health system.
This will be delivered via a tripartite approach encompassing research and innovation, education
and training and clinical service.
Manchester Cancer Research Centre
www.mcrc.manchester.ac.uk
The Manchester Cancer Research Centre (MCRC) is a unique collaboration that brings together
the expertise, vision and resources of our partner organisations, each of which have outstanding
individual reputations in cancer research.
The Centre was formed in 2006 by The University of Manchester, Cancer Research UK and The
Christie NHS Foundation Trust and has since been established as the cancer research arm of
the Manchester Academic Health Science Centre (MAHSC). It has recently been designated as
a Cancer Research UK Major Centre, one of only three in the UK under the Directorship
of Professor Nic Jones.
The MCRC vision is to transform the care of cancer patients, by the application of personalised
medicine throughout an individual patient’s diagnostic and treatment journey. Recent advances
have meant that this vision is within reach for some, but more research is needed to make it a
reality for all cancer patients.
The MCRC has enjoyed considerable success in recent months with the creation of a CRUK
funded Centre of Excellence in Lung Cancer Research (with UCL, London), a new
CRUK/EPSRC Cancer Imaging Centre (with University of Cambridge) and the award of a
Movember Prostate Cancer Centre of Excellence (with Queen’s University Belfast). To allow us
to continue to expand our research and attract leading scientists to Manchester, an iconic new
research facility opened on The Christie site in June 2015. This £28.5million building will be
home to 250 researchers and has been designed to encourage greater interaction between
different research groups and between basic and clinical scientists.
Bringing together basic, translational and clinical research on a single site, the MCRC
partnership provides the integrated approach essential to turn research findings in the laboratory
into better, more effective, treatments for cancer patients. Few other places in the UK have the
breadth and depth of expertise, the buy-in from all partners, the investment, the infrastructure,
and the access to such a large and diverse patient population, to achieve this.
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F)
The Christie NHS Foundation Trust
www.christie.nhs.uk
The Christie NHS Foundation Trust was established in 1901 by charitable donations, as a
specialist hospital caring for cancer patients and developing new treatments. It became a
Foundation Trust in April 2007, has 30,000 members and a turnover of £183M. It has a green
governance rating and a financial risk rating of 4 (good) from Monitor and was rated one of the
top 5 hospitals in England by the 2011 staff and inpatient survey.
The Christie is the sole provider of radiotherapy and chemotherapy to the 3.2 million people in
the Greater Manchester and Cheshire cancer network, which is the largest in England. It also
provides highly specialist surgical cancer services to patients across the north west and
nationally. In addition, it delivers radiotherapy services from two satellite centres that it runs at
the Royal Oldham and Salford Royal hospital sites. Consultants from The Christie visit 8 other
hospitals in the network, delivering outpatient services and some chemotherapy treatments.
The Christie brings together basic and translational research with NHS service on a single site to
deliver new cancer treatments. It is one of the largest cancer centres in Europe, treating more
than 40,000 cancer patients a year, and has been elected to the board of the Organisation of
European Cancer Institutes (OECI), the umbrella organisation for all the major cancer centres in
the EU.
The Christie is organised in four clinical management divisions: Networked Services Division
includes the Departments of Medical Oncology, Clinical Oncology, Palliative Care,
Endocrinology and Paediatric and Adolescent Oncology. Cancer Centre Services includes
Surgery, Anaesthetics, HDU, Haematology, Radiology, Pathology, Pharmacy and Supportive
care. In addition, the divisions of Christie Medical Physics and Engineering and Research and
Education deliver important components of the comprehensive cancer centre.
The Departments of Medical and Clinical Oncology have international reputations for their
clinical work. All consultants are site specialised and common treatment policies are developed
through the multi-disciplinary Disease Groups (DGs). Links to the cancer units are maintained
through a number of peripheral and outreach clinics across the network.
The Patient Treatment Centre opened in November 2010 and is a purpose built facility
encompassing a dedicated Clinical Trials Unit, an outpatient chemotherapy treatment facility and
a private patient facility. Two satellite radiotherapy centres, at Oldham and Salford, enabling
increased capacity for treatment and local delivery of treatment, opened in August 2010 and July
2011 respectively. There are plans for The Christie to develop satellite centres in the Pennine
Trust and in Salford so that ambulatory care can be delivered locally.
The Christie is committed to cancer research. The Research Division has strong links with The
University of Manchester, Cancer Research UK and the Manchester Cancer Research Centre.
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