Yannick Poirier, PhD

2007     B.Sc., Physics, Université de Moncton

2009     M.Sc., Medical Physics & Applied Radiation Sciences, McMaster University

2014     Ph.D., Physics, University of Calgary

2015     Radiation Oncology Physics Residency, CancerCare Manitoba

Dr. Poirier joined us from Canada in 2016 from the Tom Baker Cancer Centre in Calgary, Canada. He specializes in the modeling and experimental dosimetry of low-energy kilovoltage x-ray sources and improving dosimetric standards for pre-clinical radiation biology studies. Most recently, he has focused on FLASH dosimetry and FLASH research from electron and proton sources. Clinically, he specializes in stereotactic radiation surgery and has developed the University of Maryland's technique for single-isocenter multiple-target treatment, which has lead to a notable increase in the number of lesions treated at our institution. Dr. Poirier is board-certified by both the Canadian College of Physicists in Medicine (CCPM) and the American Board of Radiology (dABR), and is a fellow of the CCPM.

kilovoltage x-ray dosimetry, CBCT imaging dose, experimental dosimetry, FLASH, Ultra-high dose rate, scintillator dosimetry, radiochromic films

C Kirkby, E Ghasroddashti, Y Poirier, M Tambasco, RD Stewart, RBE of kV CBCT radiation determined by Monte Carlo DNA damage simulations, Phys. Med. Biol. 58, 5693–5704 (2013).

Y Poirier, A Kouznetsov, B Koger, M Tambasco, Experimental validation of a simplified kV imaging source model, Med. Phys. 41, 041915/1–11 (2014).

M Sommerville, Y Poirier, M Tambasco, Using HVL and kVp to portray an x-ray source for dose calculations in CT, J. Appl. Clin. Med. Phys. 16, 386–400 (2015). This publication won the JACMP's award for best paper in imaging physics for 2016.

E Draeger, A Sawant, C Johnstone, B Koger, S Becker, Z Vujaskovic, I-L Jackson, Y Poirier, A Dose of Reality: How 20 years of incomplete physics and dosimetry reporting in radiobiology may have contributed to the reproducibility crisis, Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 106(2): pp.243-252 (2020). This publication won the best oral presentation award at the COMP ASM in Montreal, 2018, and led to multiple invited presentations, including one at the Radiation Research Society meeting in Puerto Rico, 2021.

Y Poirier, M Belley, M Dewhirst, T Yoshizumi, J Down, Transitioning from Gamma Rays to Xrays for Comparable Biomedical Research Irradiations: Energy Matters, Rad Res 193(6), 506–511 (2020).

Y Poirier, S Becker, S Mossahebi, B Koger, J Xu, N Lamichhane, P Maxim, A Sawant, Radiation shielding and safety implications following linac conversion to an electron FLASH-RT unit, Med Phys 48(9), 5396–4405 (2021).

A Perstin, Y Poirier, G Mardirossian, T Schulze, A Sawant, M Tambasco, Quantifying the DNA-damaging effects of FLASH irradiation with a plasmid DNA-based detector, Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 113(2), 437–447 (2022).

Y Poirier, J Xu, S Mossahebi, F Theriault-Proulx, A Sawant, Characterization, validation, and proof in principle in a novel plastic scintillator for on-line FLASH dosimetry, Med Phys 49(7), 4682–4692 (2022).

Y Poirier, LA DeWerd, F Trompier, M Dos Santos, K Sheng, K Kunugi, MM Satyamitra, AL DiCarlo, TA Winters. Commentary: Minimum Reporting Standards Should be Expected for PreClinical Radioiology Irradiators and Dosimetry in the Published Literature. Radiat Res. 2023 Sep 1;200(3):217–222.