Medical Dosimetry
Dosimetrists receive instructions from the radiation oncologist as to the desired target for radiation, the nearby organs that must be spared, and the radiation dose desired for each patient. They turn these goals into a treatment plan with field sizes and shapes, beam angles, and dose calculations that can be executed daily by the radiation therapists. Frequently the dosimetrist and the physician work through several plans to get one that meets all the requirements. The final plan is approved by the radiation oncologist, and then checked for calculations and accuracy by the medical physicist before it is implemented.
Many, though not all, dosimetrists have years of experience as radiation therapists before taking additional training in dosimetry. Some go directly from a college physics degree to dosimetry training.
Yang Cai, M.S.
Yang joined the Radiation Oncology Department in 2007 as a medical dosimetrist at The Potomac Hospital Radiation Oncology Center. He completed his medical dosimetry training at the Newark Beth Israel Medical Center. He has been a dosimetrist at the Long Island College Hospital in New York and St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Arizona. Yang enjoys almost all outdoor activities outside of the clinic.
Sydney Seracino, CMD, RT(T)
Presently serves as a dosimetrist in the Radiation Oncology Department at Inova Fairfax Hospital. She came to Inova in 1993 as a Radiation Therapist and completed her RT training at the Medical College of Virginia School of Radiation Therapy, where she also served as a staff therapist for 2 years prior to joining our team.
Nelson Tendoh, B.S., CMD
Presently serves as a Medical Dosimetrist in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Inova Fairfax Hospital. He has been at Inova since 2004, working initially as a Radiation Therapist. He completed his Radiation Therapy training at Howard University and has both training and work experiences at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Beth Israel Hospital in Boston, Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle; U.C. Davis Hospital in Sacramento and VCU/MCV in Richmond.
Jean Wheeler, CMD, RT(R)(T)
Jean is a Medical Dosimetrist in the Radiation Oncology Department at Inova Fairfax Hospital. Jean has spent over 20 years working in the Inova Health System and returned to Inova Fairfax Hospital in 2010. She completed her training at Prince George’s Community College and at the George Washington University Medical Center. She’s also working on a part time degree in Business Administration and Healthcare Management.
