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Partnership celebrates launch of first ebook collaboration

17 Jul 2017 by Simon Davies

IOP Publishing and the Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine (IPEM) marked a new milestone in their 40-year relationship this week, with the publication of their first ebook together.

The book is the first in a new ebooks programme by IPEM and IOP Publishing, specifically designed for the medical physics and biomedical engineering communities

It was written by IPEM Fellows Professor Patrick Horton, Honorary Consultant Physicist at the Royal Surrey County Hospital, and Dr David Eaton, chair of IPEM’s Radiotherapy Special Interest group, from Mount Vernon Hospital, Middlesex.

Titled Design and Shielding of Radiotherapy Treatment Facilities, it is the heavily updated second edition of IPEM Report 75, first published in 1997 as part of IPEM’s reports series, which provide consensus guidelines on a wide range of topics.

The new edition contains numerous updates, including guidance on new radiotherapy treatment techniques such as IMRT, VMAT, and FFF linacs, which impact on shielding requirements; special treatment techniques covering Gamma Knife, TomoTherapy, and CyberKnife; new shielding materials such as Magnetite concrete/ Nelco, Ledite and Verishield blocks; new bunker designs; and new calculation techniques

It also aims to capture experience from the expansion in bunker construction in the National Cancer Plans, and to reflect current UK ionising radiation regulations.

Rosemary Cook, chief executive of IPEM, said: “For many years, IPEM reports have been an invaluable and authoritative resource for those working in medical physics and clinical engineering, both in the UK but also worldwide. However, shipping a hard copy around the world could be prohibitive to some readers, and you only need to look on a typical commuter train to see the number of electronic readers far exceeds printed books.

Pernille Hammelsoe, associate director journals at IOP Publishing, said: “This book is a strong statement to launch the e-book series on Physics and Engineering in Medicine and Biology, a collaboration between IPEM and IOPP. There is very little else out there with the breadth and contemporaneity of this report, so it has the potential to become a key work of reference for the communities working in radiation physics and radiotherapy across the globe.”

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