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Nrusingh C. Biswal, PhD

Academic Title:

Assistant Professor

Primary Appointment:

Radiation Oncology

Location:

Maryland Proton Treatment Center

Phone (Primary):

(410) 369-5321

Fax:

(410) 347-0870

Education and Training

B.Sc, Physics -- Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, India

M.Sc, Physics -- Ravenshaw University, Cuttack, India

M.Tech, Laser Technology --  Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, India

Ph.D., Electrical Engineering --  University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT

Residency, Therapeutic Medical Physics -- Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL

Biosketch

Dr. Biswal received his Ph.D. in Electrical and Biomedical Engineering at University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT in 2010. His research focused on " Diffuse optical fluorescence tomography for imaging tumor vasculature and hypoxia", under the supervision of Dr. Quing Zhu. Dr. Biswal completed his Therapeutic Medical Physics residency in Radiation Oncology at Rush University Medical Center in 2015. Dr. Biswal joined us, in 2019, from the Rutgers University where he was an Assistant Professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology from 2016 to 2019. 

Research/Clinical Keywords

Clinical safety, workflow and efficiency improvement during proton therapy, Molecular Imaging for studying tumor microenvironment, Image-guided proton therapy, Therapeutic response assessment, Imaging and treatment of tumor Hypoxia, Tumor Hyperthermia.

Highlighted Publications

Biswal, N. C., Gupta, S., Ghosh, N., Pradhan, A. Recovery of turbidity free fluorescence from measured fluorescence: an experimental approach. Optics Express. 2003 Dec 1; 11 (24): 3320-3331.

Gupta, S., Nair, M. S., Pradhan, A., Biswal, N. C., Agarwal, N., Agarwal, A., Panigrahi, P. K. Wavelet based characterization of spectral fluctuations in normal, benign and cancerous human breast tissues. J. of Biomedical Optics. 2005; 10(05): 054012(1-8).

Gamelin, J., Yang, Y., Biswal, N. C., Chen, Y., Yan, S., Zhang, X., Karemeddini, M, Brewer, M., Zhu, Q. A prototype hybrid intraoperative probe for ovarian cancer detection; Optics Express. 2009; 17(9): 7245-7258.

Biswal, N. C., Gamelin, J. K., Yuan, B., Becker, M. V., Becker, J. M., Zhu, Q. Fluorescence imaging of vascular endothelial growth factor tumors for mice embedded in turbid medium; J. of Biomedical Optics. 2010; 15(1): 016012 (1-11).

Yang, Y., Wang, T., Biswal, N. C., Wang, X., Sanders, M., Brewer, M., Zhu, Q. Optical scattering coefficient estimated by OCT correlates with collagen content in ovarian tissue. J. of Biomedical Optics. 2011; 16(9): 090504(1-30).

Pavlik, C., Biswal, N. C., Gaenzler, F. C., Morton, M. D., Kuhn, L. T., Claffey K. P., Zhu, Q.,Smith, M. B. Synthesis and fluorescent characteristics of Imidazole-Indocyanine Green conjugates. Dyes and Pigments. 2011; 89(1): 9-15.

Yang, Y., Biswal, N. C., Wang, T., Kumavor, P., Karimeddin, M., Vento, J., Sanders, M., Brewer, M., Zhu, Q. Potential role of a hybrid intraoperative probe based on OCT and positron detection for ovarian cancer detection and characterization; Biomedical Optics Express. 2011; 2(7): 1918-1930.

Biswal, N. C., Pavlik, C., Smith, M. B., Aguirre, A., Xu, Y., Zanganeh, S., Kuhn, L. T., Claffey, K. P., Zhu, Q. Imaging tumor hypoxia by near-infrared fluorescence tomography. J. Biomedical Optics. 2011; 16(6): 066009 (1-8).

Ardeshirpour, Y., Biswal, N. C., Aguirre, A., Zhu, Q. Artifact reduction method in diffuse optical tomography using exogenous contrast agents. J. Biomedical Optics. 2011; 16(4): 046015 (1-11).

Biswal, N.C., Xu, Y., Zhu, Q. Imaging tumor oxyhemoglobin and deoxyhemoglobin concentrations with ultrasound-guided diffuse optical tomography. Technology in Cancer Research and Treatment. 2011; 10(5): 417-429.

Additional Publication Citations

Biswal, N. C., Ayala-Orozco, C., Halas, N. J., Joshi, A. Calibrating the photo-thermal response of magneto-fluorescent gold nanoshells. IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBC). 2011; FrA19.5: 4776-4779.

Gharekhan, A., Biswal, N. C., Gupta, S., Panigrahi, P. K., Pradhan, A. Characteristic spectral features of the polarized fluorescence of breast cancer in the wavelet domain. Applied Spectroscopy. 2012; 66(7): 820-827.

Chen, W., Ayala-Orozco, C., Biswal N. C., Perez-Torres, C., Bartels, M., Bardhan, R., Stinnet, G., Liu, X., Ji, B., Deorukhkar, A., Brown, L. V., Guha, S., Pautler, R. G., Krishnan, S., Halas, N.J., Joshi, A. Targeting of pancreatic cancer with magneto-fluorescent theranostic gold nanoshells. Nanomedicine. 2013; 9(8): 1209-1222.

Abuteen, A., Zanganeh, S., Akhigbe, J. Samankumara, L., Aguirre, A., Biswal, N.C., Braune, M. Vollrtsen, A. Roder, B., Bruckner, C., Zhu, Q. The evaluation of NIR-absorbing porphyrin derivatives as contrast agents in photoacoustic imaging. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics. 2013; 15: 18502-18509.

Fu, X., Creighton, C. J., Biswal, N. C., Kumar, V., Shea, M., Herrera, S., Contreras, A., Gutierrez, C., Wang, T., Nanda, S., Giuliano, M., Morrison, G., Nardone, A., Karlin, K., Westbrook, T., Heiser, L., Anur, P., Spellman, P, Guichard, S., Smith, P., Davies, B., Klinowska, T., Lee, A., Mills, G., Rimawi, M., Hilsenbeck, S., Gray, J., Joshi, A., Osborne, C., Schiff, R.. Overcoming endocrine resistance due to reduced PTEN levels in ER-positive breast cancer by cotargeting mTOR, AKT, or MEK. Breast Cancer Research. 2014; 16:430 (1-17).

Biswal, N. C., Swan, B., McKenna, M., Singh, R. UroLift as a surrogate for fiducial markers in IGRT planning of prostate cancer in BPH patient. Practical Radiation Oncology. 2018; 8(4): e231- e233.

Zhang, A., Deek, M. P., Kim, S., Sayan, M., Grann, A., Wagman, R. T., Malhotra, U., Hathout, L., Biswal, N. C., Zhang, Y., Langenfeld, J., Kennedy, T., August, D. A., Jabbour, S. K. Vertebral body irradiation during chemoradiation therapy for esophageal cancer contributes to acute bone marrow toxicity. Journal of Gastrointestinal Oncology. 2019. Doi: 10.21037/jgo.2019.01.20

Jagtap, J., Joshi, A., Biswal, N. C. Nanomedicine: Development and Challenges in Cancer Treatment. American Journal of Biomedical Science & Research. 2019; 6(3): 234-236. DOI: 34297/AJBSR.2019.06.001036.

Biswal, N.C., Fu, X., Jagtap, J., Shea, M.J., Kumar, V., Lords, T., Roy, R., Schiff, R., Joshi, A. In vivo Longitudinal Imaging of RNAi Induced Endocrine Therapy Resistance in Breast Cancer. Journal of Biophotonics. 2020; 13(1): e201900180 (1-9). DOI: 10.1002/jbio.201900180.

Dwivedi, A., McGarry, T., Bond, L., Braver, J.K., Biswal, N.C. Variation of V105% between pre- and postmerged subfields in field-in-field Hypofractionated breast radiotherapy plans. Medical Dosimetry. 2020; 45: 19-20. DOI: 1016/j.meddos.2019.04.002.

Biswal, S. S., Amarnath, T., Panigrahi, P. K., Biswal, N. C. Application of machine learning to predict diseases based on symptoms in rural India. In: Dehuri S., Mishra B., Mallick P., Cho SB., Favorskaya M. (eds) Biologically Inspired Techniques in Many-Criteria Decision Making. BITMDM 2019. Learning and Analytics in Intelligent Systems. 2020; Vol. 10: 55-61. DOI: 1007/978-3-030-39033-4_5.

Yao, W., Schweitzer, N., Biswal, N. C., Polf, J., Farr, J., Vujaskovic, Z. A retrospective study of bowel and rectum air effect on target dose with intensity modulated proton therapy plans. Acta Oncologica. 2020; 59(10): 1186-1192. DOI: 10.1080/0284186X.2020.1769859.

Biswal, S. S., Amarnath, T., Panigrahi, P. K., Biswal, N. C. Machine learning to diagnose common diseases based on symptoms. In: Sharma N., Chakrabarti A., Balas V.E., Martinovic J. (eds) Data Management, Analytics and Innovation (ICDMAI-2020). Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing (AISC) Series of Springer. 2021; 1175: 237-245. DOI: 10.1007/978-981-15-5619-7_16.

Biswal, N.C., Maslowski, A., Jagtap, J., Wareing, T., McGhee, J., Joshi, A. Measuring absolute phase in homodyne mode frequency domain fluorescence optical tomography. Asian Journal of Physics. 2020; 29(5-7): 483-490.

Zhang, Y., Jabbour, S. K., Zhang, A., Liu, B., Yue, N. J., Biswal, N. C. Proton beam therapy can achieve lower vertebral bone marrow dose than photon beam therapy during chemoradiation therapy of esophageal cancer. Medical Dosimetry.2021; 46(3): 229-235. DOI: 10.1016/j.meddos.2020.12.003.

MacFarlane, M.J., Jiang, K., Mundis, M., Nichols, E., Chen, S., Biswal, N.C. Comparison of the dosimetric accuracies of proton breast plans delivered with VisionRT and CBCT setup. Journal of Applied Clinical Medical Physics. 2021; 22: 153-158. DOI: 10.1002/acm2.13357.

Biswal, N. C., Rodrigues, D. B., Yao, W., Witek, M. E., Molitoris, J. M., Chen, S. Evaluation of intra-fraction couch shifts for proton treatment delivery of head and neck cancer patients: Toward optimal imaging frequency. Journal of Applied Clinical Medical Physics. 2022; e13795: 1-8. DOI: 10.1002/acm2.13795.

Biswal, N. C., Gupta, S., Pradhan, A.; Extraction of biochemical information from intrinsic fluorescence; National Laser Symposium, IIT Kharagpur, WB, India, 12/22/2003; #621-622

Gupta, S., Biswal, N. C., Ghosh, N., Pradhan, A.; Detection of milk adulteration using fluorescence spectroscopy; National Laser Symposium, IIT Kharagpur, WB, India, 12/22/2003; #619-620

Gharekhan, A. H., Biswal, N. C., Gupta, S., Pradhan, A., Bhaskaran, S. M., Panigrahi, P. K.; Characterization of cancer and normal tissue fluorescence through wavelet transform and singular value decomposition; SPIE Photonics West, San Jose, CA, 01/19/2008; #6853.

Biswal, N. C., Yuan, B., Gamelin, J., Zhu, Q.; In-vivo small animal near infrared fluorescence imaging with prior anatomical information; Era of Hope Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program Meeting, Baltimore, MD, 06/25/2008; #P8-16

Biswal, N. C., Gamelin, J., Yuan, B., Becker, J. M., Zhu, Q.; Near infrared fluorescence imaging of small animals with simultaneously estimated structural information; SPIE Photonics West, San Jose, CA, 01/24/2009; #717416

Yang, Y., Biswal, N. C., Kumavor, P., Wang, T., Karimeddini, M., Sanders, M., Brewer, M., Zhu, Q.; A miniature prototype hybrid intraoperative probe for ovarian cancer detection; OSA Biomedical Optics Topical Meeting, Miami, FL, 04/10/2010; #BSuC7.

Ardeshirpour, Y., Biswal, N. C., Zhu, Q.; Improvement of NIR diffuse optical tomography in patients with a small amount breast tissue by using contrast agents; OSA Biomedical Optics Topical Meeting, Miami, FL, 04/10/2010; #JMA79

Biswal, N. C., Pavlik, C., Smith, M. B., Kuhn, L. T. , Claffey, K. P., Zhu, Q.; Nitroimidazoleindocyanine Green conjugates for breast cancer hypoxia imaging; Optical Society of America (OSA) Biomedical Optics Topical Meeting, Miami, FL, 04/10/2010; #JMA92.

Biswal, N. C., Zhu, Q.; Diffuse optical imaging for mapping tumor hypoxia; 2nd North American International Optical Society of America (OSA) Network of Students Conference, Tucson, AZ, 09/2010

Biswal, N. C., Bartels, M., Chen, W., Ayala-Orozco, C., Bardhan, R., Schiff, R., Deorukhkar, A., Krishnan, S., Joshi, A.; Dynamic pharmacokinetics of breast cancer theranostic nanoparticles; 8th Annual Duncan Cancer Center Symposium, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 11/05/2010

Zanganeh, S. Aguirre, A., Biswal, N. C., Pavlik, C., Smith, M. B., Alqasemi, U., Li, H., Zhu, Q.;Hypoxia targeted carbon nanotubes as a sensitive contrast agent for photoacoustic imaging of tumors; SPIE Photonics West, San Francisco, CA, 01/22/2011, #78991S.

Yang, Y., Biswal, N. C., Wang, T., Kumavor, P., Karimeddini, M., Sanders, M., Brewer, M., Zhu,Q.; A hybrid positron and OCT intraoperative probe for ovarian cancer detection and characterization; SPIE Photonics West, San Francisco, CA, 01/22/2011; #7892DY.

Biswal, N. C., Pavlik, C., Smith, M. B., Aguirre, A., Zanganeh, S., Xu, Y., Kuhn, L. T., Claffey, K. P., Zhu, Q.; Tumor hypoxia fluorescence imaging using 2-nitroimidazole bis-carboxylic acid indocyanine dye conjugate; SPIE Photonics West, San Francisco, CA, 01/22/2011; #78962R.

Biswal, N. C., Xu, Y., Zhu, Q.; Breast tumor hypoxia mapping using ultrasound guided diffuse optical tomography; SPIE Photonics West, San Francisco, CA, 01/22/2011; #78962N

Biswal, N. C., Xu, Y., Zhu, Q.; Breast tumor hemoglobin oxygenation measurement and hypoxia mapping by diffuse optical and diffuse fluorescence imaging; Era of Hope DOD Breast Cancer Program Meeting, Orlando, FL, 08/02/2011; #P17-18

Chen, W., Ayala-Orozco, C., Biswal, N. C., Krishnan, S., Schiff, R., Halas, N., Joshi, A.; Magneto-fluorescent gold nanoshells for pancreatic cancer imaging and therapy; World Molecular Imaging Congress (WMIC), San Diego, CA, 09/07/2011, #T094

Biswal, N. C., Fu, X., Shea, M. J., Westbrook, T. F., Schiff, R., Joshi, A.; In vivo imaging of RNAi induced endocrine therapy resistance in breast cancer; World Molecular Imaging Congress (WMIC), San Diego, CA, 09/07/2011; #P290

Biswal, N. C., Ayala-Orozco, C., Halas, N., Joshi, A.; Calibration of theranostic response of magneto-fluorescent gold nanoshells embedded in scattering medium; World Molecular ImagingCongress (WMIC), San Diego, CA, 09/07/2011; #T085

Biswal, N. C., Fu, X., Shea, M., Roy, R., Lords, T., Westbrook, T. F., Schiff R., Joshi, A.; Sensitive in-vivo fluorescence imaging of endocrine therapy resistance in breast cancer; 9th Annual Duncan Cancer Center Symposium, Houston, TX, 11/04/2011

Biswal, N. C., Ayala-Orozco, C., Dowell, A. E., Halas, N. J., Joshi, A.; Theranostic responses of magneto-fluorescent gold nanoshells in breast cancer models; 9th Annual Duncan Cancer Center Symposium, Houston, TX, 11/04/2011

Fu, X., Shea, M., Biswal, N. C., Mitchell, T., Giuliano, M., Healy, N. A., Meerbrey, K. L., Joshi, A., Westbrook, T., Hilsenbeck, S., Osborne, C. K., Schiff, R.; Establishment and characterization of endocrine resistance model in vitro and in vivo by inducible PTEN knockdown; San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, San Antonio, TX, 12/06/2011; P4-01-03

Dowell, A. E., Chen, W., Biswal, N. C., Ayala-Orozco, C., Giuliano, M., Schiff, R., Halas, N., Joshi, A.; Calibrating the imaging and therapy performance of magneto-fluorescent gold nanoshells for breast cancer; SPIE Photonics West, San Francisco, CA, 01/21/2012; #8233.

Yang, Y., Wang, T., Biswal, N. C., Kumavor, P., Wang, X., Karimeddini, M., Vento, J., Sanders, M., Brewer, M., Zhu, Q.; An intraoperative probe combining positron detection and OCT imaging for ovarian cancer detection and characterization; Proc. SPIE Photonics West, San Francisco, CA; 2012; #8220-13

Y., Wang, T., Biswal, N. C., Wang, X., Sanders, M., Brewer, M., Zhu, Q.; Assessment of collagen changes in ovarian tissue by extracting optical scattering coefficient from OCT images;Proc. SPIE Photonics West, San Francisco, CA; 2012; #8213 (82130C)

Biswal, N. C., Ayala-Orozco, C., Halas, N., Joshi, A.; Molecularly targeted theranostics of aberrant vasculature in pancreatic cancer; World Molecular Imaging Congress (WMIC), Dublin,Ireland, 09/05/2012

Biswal, N. C., Fu, X., Shea, M., Mitchel, T., Schiff, R., Joshi, A.; Longitudinal imaging of RNAi induced endocrine therapy resistance in breast cancer; World Molecular Imaging Congress (WMIC), Dublin, Ireland, 09/05/2012

Biswal, N. C., Anderson, J., Sun, J., Bernard, D, Jegier, B., Wu, Z., Dandekar, V., Yao, R., Darwish, N., Woloschak, G. E., Griem, K. L., Chu, J. C. H.; Early detection of radiation skin reactions by changes in thermal effusivity; AAPM Midwest Chapter Spring Meeting (Young Investigator’s Symposium), Chicago, IL, 04/27/2013, #2

Chu, J.C.H., Biswal, N. C., Anderson, J., Darwish, N., Sun,J., Bernard, D., Woloschak, G., Gegier, B., Wu, Z., Dandekar, V., Griem, K.; Three-Dimensional Thermal Tomography as Predictor for Radiation-induced Skin Reactions;, EPR 2013 Conference Proceedings, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, June 22-28, 2013

Darwish, N., Biswal, N. C., Sun, J., Bernard, D., Dandekar, V., Yao, R., Jegier, B. J., Woloschak, G. E., Griem, K. L., Chu, J. C. H.; Blood perfusion of the skin as an indicator of radiationinduced skin reaction; AAPM 55th Annual Meeting, Indianapolis, IN, 08/04/2013; TH-A-WAB-10. Medical Physics, 40:522, 2013

Biswal, N. C., Sun, J., Anderson, J., Bernard, D., Dandekar, V., Yao, R., Darwish, N., Wu, Z., Jegier, B. J., Woloschak, G. E., Griem, K. L., Chu, J. C. H.; Thermal effusivity changes predict radiation exposure; AAPM 55th Annual Meeting, Indianapolis, IN, 08/04/2013; #SU-E-CAMPUSJ-03. Medical Physics, 40:378, 2013.

Anderson, J., Kiel, K., Yao, R., Liao, Y., Bernard, D., Biswal, N. C., Turian J., Chu, J.C.H.,; PET Image-Guided Dose Escalation Study for Cervical Cancer Patients Receiving HDR Brachytherapy; AAPM 55th Annual Meeting, Indianapolis, IN, 08/04/2013. Medical Physics, 40:309, 2013

Biswal, N. C., Wu, Z., Sun, J., Anderson, J., Bernard, D., Dandekar, V., Jegier, B., Woloschak, G., Griem, K. L., Chu, J. C. H.; Skin thermal effusivity changes as predictor for radiation exposure; 60th Annual meeting of Radiation Research Society (RRS), Las Vegas, NV, 09/21/2014; #399.

Biswal, N. C., Zhen, H., Chu, J. C. H., Turian, J.; Commissioning aS1000 electronic portal imaging device, EPID, for patient specific IMRT QA on a Varian Trilogy machine; AAPM Midwest Chapter Spring Meeting (Young Investigator’s Symposium), Chicago, IL, 04/25/2015; #1

Biswal, N. C., Wu, Z., Sun, J., Chu, J. C. H.; Skin temperature recovery rate and thermal effusivity as predictors for radiation-induced skin reactions; AAPM 57th Annual Meeting, Anaheim, CA, 07/11/2015; #SU-E-J-273. Medical Physics, 42:3329, June 2015.

Biswal, N. C., Cifter, G., Sun, J., Sen, D., Wang, D., Diaz, A., Griem, K., Chu, J. C. H.; Early prediction of radiotherapy induced skin reactions using dynamic infrared imaging; AAPM 58th Annual Meeting, Washnigton, DC, 08/03/2016; WE-FG-202-1. Medical Physics, 43:3826, June 2016.

Zhang, A., Deek, M.P., Kim, S., Grann, A., Wagman, R.T., Malhotra, U., Hathout, L., Biswal, N.C., Zhang, Y., Langenfeld J., Kennedy T., August, D. A., Jabbour, S.; Vertebral Body Irradiation During Chemoradiation Therapy for Esophageal Cancer can Promote Acute Bone Marrow Toxicity; ASTRO Annual Meeting 2017, San Diego, CA, 09/26/2017. Presentation No. 2492.

Liu, B., Biswal, N. C., Wang, X., Nie, K., Zhang, A., Yue, N., Jabbour, S., Zhang, Y.; Dosimetric Comparison of radiotherapy Plans Using Proton Therapy, VMAT and Static IMRT for Chemoradiation Therapy of Esophageal Cancer; AAPM Annual Meeting 2018, Nashville, TN, 07/29/2018. Presentation No. SU-I-GPD-T-124. Medical Physics, 45(6): E267, 2018.

Biswal, N.C., Swann, B., McKenna, M., Singh, R.; Implanted UroLift Device Works as Fiducial Markers in IGRT Planning of Patients with Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia: A Case Study; AAPM Annual Meeting 2018, Nashville, TN, 07/29/2018. Presentation No. SU-I-GPD-J-13. Medical Physics, 45(6): E223, 2018.

Biswal, N.C., Zhang, A., Jabbour, S.; Assessment of Radiation Therapy Response in Esophageal Cancer Using Weekly CBCT Data; AAPM Annual Meeting 2018, Nashville, TN, 07/29/2018. Presentation No. SU-I-GPD-J-69. Medical Physics, 45(6): E236, 2018.

Dwivedi, A., McGarry, T., Bond, L., Braver, J. K., Biswal, N.C.; Comparison of Breast V105% Between Pre- and Post-Merged Subfields in Field-In-Field Hypofractionated Breast Radiation Treatment Plans; AAPM Annual Meeting 2019, San Antonio, TX, 07/14/2019. Medical Physics, 46(6): E624, 2019.

Dwivedi, A., Ip, W., McGarry, T., Bond, L., Braver, J. K., Biswal, N. C.; Comparison of Single-Iso VMAT verses Multi-Iso Dynamic Conformal Arc for Multi-Met SRS Plans; AAPM Annual Meeting 2019, San Antonio, TX, 07/14/2019. Medical Physics, 46(6): E657, 2019.

Biswal, S. S., Amarnath, T., Panigrahi, P. K., Biswal, N. C. Application of machine learning to predict diseases based on symptoms in rural India. Springer International Conference on Biologically Inspired Techniques in Many-Criteria Decision Making (BITMDM-2019). Paper ID: BITMDM-FMU-016. Oral Presentation. Balasore, India, 20th - 21st December, 2019.

Biswal, S. S., Amarnath, T., Panigrahi, P. K., Biswal, N. C. Machine learning to diagnose common diseases based on symptoms. Springer 4th International Conference on Data Management, Analytics & Innovation (ICDMAI-2020). Paper ID: Oral Presentation. New Delhi, India, 18th January, 2020.

Yao, W., Schweitzer, N., Biswal, N. C., Polf, J., Farr, J., Vujaskovic, Z. A Retrospective Study of Bowel and Rectum Air Effect on Dose Coverage in Prostate, Colon, Gynecologic and Embryonal Rhabdomyosarcoma Tumors Treated with Robust Intensity-Modulated Proton Therapy; ASTRO’s 62nd Annual Meeting, 2020 (poster # 2615). International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics, 108 (3), e275, 2020.

Molitoris, J. K., Rodrigues, D. B., Snider, J. W., Rao, A, Mossahebi, S., Zakhary, M., Biswal, N. C., Lehman, K., Vujaskovic, Z.; Concurrent Deep Locoregional Thermal Therapy with Pencil Beam Scanning Proton Therapy Results in Modest Toxicity with the Promise of Increased Efficacy; ASTRO’s 62nd Annual Meeting, 2020 (poster # 2841). International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics, 108 (3): e372-e373, 2020.

MacFarlane, M. J., Jiang, K., Mundis, M., Nichols, E., Chen, S., Biswal, N. C.: Comparison of the Dosimetric accuracy of proton breast plans delivered with VisionRT and CBCT setup; AAPM joint (AAPM/COMP) Annual Meeting 2020, Vancouver, Canada. 07/12/2020. (Oral presentation # WE-A-TRACK 3-4). Medical Physics, 47 (6): E339, 2020.

Biswal, N. C., Rodrigues, D. B., Yao, W., Chen, S.: Analysis of couch shifts for each field for proton treatment delivery of head and neck cancer patients: Towards optimal imaging frequency; AAPM joint (AAPM/COMP) Annual Meeting 2020, Vancouver, Canada. 07/12/2020. (ePoster # PO-GeP-M-59). Medical Physics, 47 (6): E578, 2020.

MacFarlane, M. J., Jiang, K., Mundis, M., Nichols, E., Chen, S., Biswal, N. C.: Comparison of the Dosimetric accuracy of proton breast plans delivered with VisionRT and CBCT setup; 2020 Mid-Atlantic Chapter (MACAAPM-2020) Fall Meeting.

Molitoris, J. K., Rodrigues, D. B., Snider, J. W., Rao, A, Mossahebi, S., Zakhary, M., Biswal, N. C., Lehman, K., Vujaskovic, Z.: Pencil beam scanning proton therapy with deep thermal therapy is safe with potential for increased efficacy in advanced abdominopelvic malignancies; PTCOG-2020.

Molitoris, J.K., Rodrigues, D., Kunaprayoon, D., Mossahebi, S., Biswal, N.C., Zakhary, M., Witek, M., Vujaskovic, Z.; Novel combination of Proton Therapy with Deep Thermal Therapy is safe with potential for increased efficacy: 2021 National Association for Proton Conference, 2021 Apr 15-16.

Biswal, N.C., Zakhary, M., Mogilnay, R., Nichols, E.M., Witek, M.E., Yi, B.Y.: Statistical Approaches to Optimize QACT Frequency during Proton Therapy: A Single Institution Study; ASTRO’s 63rd Annual Meeting, 2021 (Abstract ID # 3035), Poster Viewing Q&A - Session 9, 10/27/2021. International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics, 111 (3), e497-e498, 2021.

Mohindra, P., Risher, H, Pollock, A., Zakhary, M., Biswal, N.C., Nichols, E.M.: Intensity Modulated Proton Therapy for Gynecological Malignancies: Initiation of a Program; PTCOG 59, 2021 (Abstract Number: PTC59-2281).

Biswal, N.C., Zhang, B., Molitoris, J.K., Witek, M.E., Yi, B.Y.: Beam path length from isocenter to skin on cone beam CT images as an adaptive planning indicator of head and neck patients undergoing proton therapy; AAPM 63rd Annual Meeting, 2021 (Abstract Number # 58014, Oral presentation on 07/27/2021). Medical Physics, 48 (6), 2021.

Cohen, J., Macatee, C., Rodrigues, D., Mossahebi, S., Biswal, N.C., Zakhary, M., Kunaprayoon, D., Rana, Z., Regine, W.F., Vujaskovic, Z., Molitoris, J.K.: Clinical outcomes of re-irradiation with concurrent deep hyperthermia therapy of lower gastrointestinal malignancies; Accepted for oral presentation at 37th Annual Society for Thermal Medicine (STM) Meeting 2022.

Zhang, B., Yao, W., Biswal, N.C., Zhou, J., Xu, J., Xu, H., Chen, S., Yi, B.Y.: Variation of Bragg Peak Positions in Cone-Beam CT as An Indicator of Adaptive Planning of the Head and Neck IMPT Treatments; AAPM 64th Annual Meeting, 2022 (Abstract Number # 65094). Interactive e-poster on 07/10/2022.

Biswal, N.C., Zhang, B., Nichols, E., Witek, M., Regine, W.F., Yi, B.Y.: Beam Path Length From Isocenter to Skin On Cone-Beam CT Images as An Adaptive Planning Indicator in Proton Therapy for Extremity Tumors; AAPM 64th Annual Meeting, 2022 (Abstract Number # 65203). General e-poster viewing.

Han, D., Biswal, N.C., Zhang, B., Witek, M., Yi, B.Y.: The Pearson Correlation Coefficient of Target and the Beam Path Length Using Cone-Beam CT Images as Adaptive Planning Indicators of Head and Neck Patients Undergoing Proton Therapy; AAPM 64th Annual Meeting, 2022 (Abstract Number # 66576). General e-poster viewing.

Sheikh, E., Agrawal, K., Roy, S., Gartia, M.R., Shukla, H.D., Biswal, N.C.: Raman-Encoded Molecular Imaging and Lipidomics as Predictors of Pancreatic Cancer Microenvironment Changes during Treatment with 3-Bromopyruvate; AAPM 64th Annual Meeting, 2022 (Abstract Number # 64791). Blue Ribbon e-poster session on 07/12/2022.

Biswal, N.C., Nichols, E., Witek, M., Yi, B.Y.: Optimal QACT Frequency During Proton Therapy: A Single Institution Study; AAPM 64th Annual Meeting, 2022 (Abstract Number # 65211). General e-poster viewing.

KS, S., Selvan, T., Agarwal, S.K., Nayak, J.K., Shukla, H.D., Prema, P., Biswal, N.C.: Analytical expression of normal tissue complication probability and tumor control probability calculation for ultra-high dose rate radiation (FLASH) based on linear-quadratic model; Radiation Research Society’s 68th Annual International Meeting, 2022 (Abstract Number # 22-A-426-RRS).

Tu, K.J., Roy, S.K., Gartia, M.R., Shukla, H.D., Biswal, N.C.: Castration-resistant prostate cancer cells are sensitized to radiation after treatment with docetaxel; Radiation Research Society’s 68th Annual International Meeting, 2022 (Abstract Number # 22-A-93-RRS).

Selvan, T., Ramesh, K. Sreekumar, K., Samal, T., Preethi, R., Agarwal, S.K., Nayak, J.K., Prema, P., and Biswal, N.C.: Calculation of Positron Emitter Production in Proton Beam Therapy; 23rd National Symposium on Radiation Physics (NSRP-23), Mysuru, India, 19-21 January 2023.

Biswal, N.C., Zakhary, M., Mogilnay, R., Nichols, E., Witek, M.E., Yi, B.: Optimal QACT frequency during intensity modulated adaptive proton therapy; 61 Annual PTCOG Conference-2023, Abstract No. PTC61-0586, Oral Presentation on 06/13/2023.

Selvan, T., Ramesh, K. Sreekumar, K., Samal, T., Preethi, R., Agarwal, S.K., Nayak, J.K., Prema, P., and Biswal, N.C.: Calculation of Positron Emitter Production in Proton Beam Therapy; India International Science Festival, Bhopal, India, 21-23 January 2023.

Selvan, T., Sarath, KS, Agarwalla, S., Shukla, H.D., Nayak, J.K., Prema, P., Biswal, N.C.: Analytical expression of normal tissue complication probability and tumor control probability for FLASH radiation; 61 Annual PTCOG Conference-2023, Abstract No. PTC61-0706, Poster Presentation.

Clinical Specialty Details

Therapeutic Radiation Oncology.

Deep Tissue Hyperthermia.

Awards and Affiliations

2001                  Scholarship from Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), India, awarded for Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering

2006                  Pre-doctoral research award from Department of Defense US Army Medical Research

2008                  Department of defense US Army Breast Cancer Era of Hope Meeting Travel Award

2008                  International Society for Optics and Photonics (SPIE) Student Travel Award

2010                  Doctoral dissertation award, School of Engineering (SOE), University of Connecticut

2010                  Doctoral dissertation fellowship award, Graduate School, University of Connecticut

2011                  Department of defense US Army Breast Cancer Era of Hope Meeting Travel Award

2011                  Travel award for World Molecular Imaging Congress (WMIC-2011)

2012                 Travel award for World Molecular Imaging Congress (WMIC-2012)

2013                  Young investigator award (3rd Position) in the AAPM Midwest Chapter Spring Meeting, Chicago, IL

2014                  Travel award for Radiation Research Society Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, NV

2018                  AAPM Summer School Scholarship, Vanderbilt University, Memphis, TN

Grants and Contracts

2006 - 2007       (PI, 50%)

                          “Fluorescence Imaging of Near Infrared Diffusive Light with the Localization of Ultrasound

                          Department of Defense-US Army Breast Cancer Research Program Predoctoral Award.

                          Annual Direct Costs: $32,000

                          Total Direct Costs: $32,000

2010 - 2012       (Co-Inv 25%)

                          “Targeted Probes for Breast Tumor Hypoxia Imaging”

                          Connecticut Department of Public Health Research Grant

                          Annual Direct Costs: $100,000

                          Annual Indirect Costs: $155,000

2019 - 2021        (Co-PI 25%)

                          “Development of a quality assurance phantom for three-dimensional deep thermal   therapy treatment planning”

                           University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Department of Radiation Oncology Seed Grant

                           Annual Direct Costs: $20,000

2021 - 2023        (PI)

                          “Innovative REMI (Raman Encoded Molecular Imaging) Combined with Lipidomics to Prognosticate Castration Resistant Prostate Cancer Recurrence and                                   Treatment Response in  Preclinical Model”

                           Annual Direct Cost: $14,962        

Community Service

2021 – 2021 :  Group leader for AAPM’s multi-institutional journal club (MIJC), Group-12 (8 residents from 3 institutions). 

2022 - 2023 : Group leader for AAPM’s multi-institutional journal club (MIJC), Group-2 (10 residents from 4 institutions). 

Professional Activity

2004 - 2011       Member and student chapter president, Society for Photo-Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)

2012 - present Member, American College of Radiology (ACR)

2014 - 2015      Member, Radiation Research Society (RRS)

2015 – 2016     Member, American Brachytherapy Society (ABS)

2015 - present Member, American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM)

2017 - present Member, American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO)

Lab Techniques and Equipment

Scanning Beam Proton Therapy (Gantry and Fixed beam), Deep Tissue Hyperthermia, Small Animal Irradiator.