Jerry Battista
Emeritus
Jerry Battista
Emeritus
Dr. Battista completed his Ph.D. degree at the University of Toronto (1977). His thesis dealt with “Compton Scatter Tomography” for 3D imaging of the human body. As a post-doctoral resident, he gained clinical physics experience at Princess Margaret Hospital, and developed a strong interest in computational radiation dosimetry through heterogeneous tissue. In 1979, Jerry relocated to the Cross Cancer Institute, University of Alberta and developed one of the first “3D” treatment planning systems for image-guided cancer radiotherapy, using ‘convolution/superposition’ algorithms. From 1988-2017, Dr. Battista directed Physics Research at the London Regional Cancer Program, with appointments to Oncology, Medical Biophysics, Medical Imaging, Biomedical Engineering Program, and Physics & Astronomy. He became Chair of the Medical Biophysics Department at Western (2004-2015). Research interests included 3D dose computation and measurements in gels using optical CT scans for readout, and optimization of adaptive CT-guided radiotherapy. He has published over 150 peer-reviewed articles and co-authored major research grants in collaborations with industry. His interests have expanded to the application of solar and galactic radiation models to assess the health risks to astronauts engaged in future lunar and Mars missions. Jerry has received the Kirkby Award from the Canadian Association of Physicists (CAP) and Gold Medal from the Canadian Organization of Medical Physicists (COMP) for lifetime contributions