Waves, Particles, and Medicine in Houston: 50th AAPM Meeting, July 27 to July 31

Newswise — Later this month, thousands of scientists and health professionals from the field of medical physics will meet at the 50th meeting of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) in Houston, Texas. There, from July 27 to July 31, they will present the latest technologies for imaging and treating diseases and discuss the ethical and regulatory issues facing the field today.

Whether X-rays for CT scans, sound waves for ultrasound, magnetic fields for MRI or antimatter for PET scans, the "stuff" of physics has revolutionized the practice of medicine, and modern medical physics helps to alleviate suffering and ensure the safety of millions of people in the United States each year.

Almost all the hospitals in the United States today benefit from the work of medical physicists. They help diagnose illness by designing and implementing new and better ways of imaging the human body. They create treatment strategies for fight cancer and other diseases. They take measures for reducing the risk to people undergoing these treatments.

AAPM is the largest association of medical physicists in the world. It is composed of both scientists who develop cutting-edge technologies in the physics laboratory and board-certified health professionals who use these technologies in the clinic.

The talks at AAPM meetings cover some of the most interesting topics in medicine. Some look at new ways of imaging the human body. Others focus on treating cancerous tumors and other conditions with X rays, particles from accelerators, and other emissions. Even others describe how to tailor therapy to the specific needs of people undergoing treatment -- how to shape emissions to conform to the shape of a tumor, how to treat children rather than adults, or how to adjust treatment as tumors shrink and move as the treatment proceeds.

Journalists are invited to cover the AAPM meeting remotely or in person. In the coming weeks, additional news releases will detail specific meeting highlights. All news releases will be hosted on the AAPM website (see link below).

RELATED LINKS- AAPM home page: http://www.aapm.org - Abstracts and search form http://www.aapm.org/meetings/08AM/MeetingProgram.asp - Press Guide http://www.aapm.org/meetings/08AM/VirtualPressRoom/ - Background article about how medical physics has revolutionized medicine:http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/538208/

HOW TO COVER THE MEETINGReporters who would like to attend the meeting in person should fill out the press registration form on the AAPM Virtual Press Room. See: http://www.aapm.org/meetings/08AM/VirtualPressRoom/documents/pressregform.pdf.

Reporters who would like to cover the conference remotely will find releases and articles on the Virtual Press Room highlighting many of the interesting and important talks presented at the meeting. Even if you can't make it to Houston, the Virtual Press Room will make it possible to write stories about the meeting from your desk.

ABOUT AAPMThe American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) is a scientific, educational, and professional nonprofit organization whose mission is to advance the application of physics to the diagnosis and treatment of human disease. The association encourages innovative research and development, helps disseminate scientific and technical information, fosters the education and professional development of medical physicists, and promotes the highest quality medical services for patients. In 2008, AAPM will celebrate its 50th year of serving patients, physicians, and physicists. Please visit the association's Web site at http://www.aapm.org/.

ABOUT AIPHeadquartered in College Park, MD., the American Institute of Physics is a not-for-profit membership corporation chartered in New York State in 1931 for the purpose of promoting the advancement and diffusion of the knowledge of physics and its application to human welfare.