Western professor and Robarts Research Institute scientist Aaron Fenster has been awarded the Gold Medal from the Canadian Organization of Medical Physicists (COMP) in recognition of an outstanding career as a medical physicist.
The field of medical physics as we know it today started with the discovery of x-rays in the 1890s and now includes ultrasound, magnetic resonance, computed tomography, nuclear medicine, x-rays, and radiation therapy. The Canadian Organization of Medical Physicists is the main professional body for medical physicists practicing in Canada. Every member has an educational or professional background in physics or engineering as it applies to medicine.
Aaron Fenster
Much of Fenster’s work as an imaging scientist at Robarts and professor at the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry has focused on developing 3-D ultrasound imaging technology to improve, among other things, the diagnosis and treatment of breast and prostate cancer.
Technologies he and his team have developed allow doctors to examine patients more quickly and thoroughly without prolonged invasive procedures, and have been licensed and distributed worldwide for cancer therapy and research.
Fenster, who holds the Canada Research Chair in Biomedical Engineering, has also developed new vascular imaging systems that allow for better detection of blood clots responsible for stroke.
Fenster, a 2008 Hellmuth Prize for Achievement in Research award winner, has used inexpensive ultrasound components, computer equipment, software, and ingenuity to devise several systems which are improving the diagnosis and management of many cancers and carotid artery disease – generating an impressive 25 patents and two spin-off companies as well as licensing agreements with nine different companies.
