Congratulations to our graduate student Ethan Stolen (Giger lab) who just published a new paper in Biomedical Physics and Engineering Express (BPEX).
Their paper represents an innovation in the materials used to construct patient-specific lung shields for Total Body Irradiation (TBI). Their work highlights exciting new materials, metal-PLA filaments, which can be printed with standard 3D printers and have increased density, making them ideal for constructing accurate patient-specific shielding in radiation therapy.
Their new clinical workflow, described in this paper, is a first step towards the replacement of traditional lead-based shielding in our radiation therapy clinic here at UChicago Medicine. Their innovative process highlights UChicago’s commitment to being on the forefront of radiation therapy.
Read the paper here:
Stolen, E D, Wu, T, Schulz, J B, Allie, L, Song, C, Kim, B H, & Sohn, J J (2025). Fully customizable bronze-PLA lung shields using 3D printing for total body irradiation (TBI). Biomedical Physics & Engineering Express, 11 045001. https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/2057-1976/add898