Facilities & Technology

VUMC

Facilities

  • Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) is one of the largest academic medical centers in the Southeastern US
    • VUMC houses over 1,000 residents and fellows in training in over 100 specialties
    • Vanderbilt Ingram Cancer Center is ranked as #1 cancer center in Tennessee and is an NCI Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center
    • Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt is ranked as the #1 pediatric hospital in TN and in the Southeast
    • Vanderbilt University School of Medicine ranked #13 in US for 2022 (US News & World Report)
  • The Department of Radiation Oncology has one main site on the Nashville VUMC campus plus 4 regional satellite locations in Franklin, Spring Hill, Clarksville, and Lebanon
    • Residents only rotate at the Nashville campus (unless prefer an elective rotation at a regional site)
    • The Nashville campus is located within VUMC, with ease of access to the medical center, adult hospital, children's hospital, and research facilities for our faculty, residents, and staff. It is also immediately adjacent to Vanderbilt University's campus
  • VUMC is located adjacent to Hillsboro Village, an area for dining, shopping, and entertainment within a short walk to the medical complex

Technology

Our main site is equipped with:

  • 2 Varian TrueBeam linear accelerators
  • 1 Novalis Tx linear accelerator
  • 1 Varian Ethos  linear accelerator with adaptive planning technology 
  • 2 CT simulators
  • Mobetron IORT unit (new for 2022!)
  • GammaTile (new for 2023!)
  • Bravos HDR unit
  • On-board imaging (MV, kV, CBCT)
  • BrainLab ExacTrac infra-fractional management system

Residents gain a broad exposure to the entire spectrum of oncology patients and their treatment, including:

  • Intensity modulated RT (IMRT)
  • Volumetric arc therapy (VMAT)
  • Stereotactic body RT (SBRT) / Stereotactic ablative RT (SABR) 
  • Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) / Stereotactic RT (SRT)
  • Image-guided RT (IGRT)
  • 3D conformal RT (3D CRT)
  • 4D CT and treatment planning
  • Deep inspiratory breath hold (DIBH)
  • Total body irradiation (TBI)
  • Total skin electron therapy (TSE) with rotisserie technique 
  • Electronic brachytherapy for breast 
  • Low dose rate brachytherapy (LDR) for prostate, sarcoma, ocular melanoma
  • High dose rate brachytherapy (HDR) for gynecologic malignancies 
  • Hydrogel spacer (SpaceOAR) and fiducial placement for prostate
  • Intraoperative radiotherapy to abdomen and pelvis (Mobetron) and brain (GammaTile)
  • Unsealed sources 
  • Pediatric through geriatric aged patients 
  • Curative to palliative intents 

Treatment-planning software includes:

  • Varian Eclipse
  • Brainlab Elements
  • Brainlab iPlan
  • MiM Maestro
  • Variseed

Resources for residents

  • All residents are provided with a laptop for use at work or for remote-work from home as well as a laptop docking station and 2 monitors at each desk in the Resident Workroom. All resident desks are in the same workroom, allowing for learning and bonding among co-residents.
  • All residents are provided with a hospital-paid cell phone for use at work (includes Epic medical record access, etc)
  • Residents do have the ability to contour from home when needed with MIM and Eclipse. Docking stations and monitors are provided for home use as well.

 

Return to the main Residency Program page