Associate Professor, Head of Physics, Radiation Oncology
Dr. Hamilton earned his undergraduate degree in physics at the University of Illinois. He then earned his graduate and doctorate degrees in physics at Stanford University. He completed a fellowship in radiation and cellular oncology at the University of Chicago in 1994, where he served as assistant professor of radiation and cellular oncology, becoming director of physics in 2002.
Dr. Hamilton was appointed associate professor and head of the Department of Radiation Oncology physics section at the University of Arizona in October of 2002. Dr. Hamilton's objective is excellence in clinical service, education and research. His clinical focus is in improving patient care by incorporating technological innovations into routine radiation therapy clinical practice. Dr. Hamilton considers the education of future generations to be of paramount importance. He provides classroom instruction at undergraduate, graduate and medical resident levels, and practical clinical training for physicists and medical dosimetrists. Undergraduates, graduates and postdoctoral students have participated in his research projects.
Dr. Hamilton's general research is in the application of mathematical methods to problems in radiation therapy. He is currently investigating phenomenological modeling of radiotherapy toxicity, iterative reconstruction algorithms for optimizing intensity modulated radiation therapy treatment (IMRT), using functional imaging (PET or SPECT) data in radiotherapy planning, incorporating biologically based objectives in IMRT optimization and exploring methods to monitor and control patient motion during radiotherapy delivery.