Acknowledging and overcoming barriers to entry into radiation science for women

Abstract

Purpose

Radiation science is a unique field that brings together various disciplines to understand nature, develop new technologies, and cure diseases. Our field is a prime example of advancement through a diverse pool of competencies. Similarly, studies show that the power of diversity requires proportionate representation of sex and gender, minorities, or other groups. Nevertheless, women are still underrepresented in the radiation sciences, although disparities and underlying mechanisms were first described decades ago. This review summarizes barriers to entry and retention and suggests strategies for overcoming disparities in our field. We also highlight a concerted effort by young professionals to promote the underrepresented and underserved within the radiation science community.

Conclusion

The radiation science community should avoid losing diverse perspectives among its ranks due to sex bias or gender disparity among others. Through targeted efforts, we can cultivate change and harness the talent of researchers, practitioners, and other professionals for the benefit of scientific progress, health-care improvement, and societal advancement overall.

Keywords:

• Radiation science
• women
• diversity
• inclusion

Acknowledgements

The authors express their gratitude to the other men and women who are founding members of REDI for their tireless dedication to improving equity, diversity, and inclusion in the radiation sciences: Brian Canter, PhD (chair); Cato M Milder, MSPH; Ramish Ashraf; Carolina Garcia Garcia; Frederico Kiffer, PhD; Calvin Leung; and Rutul Patel, MS, PhD.

Disclaimer

This article represents the view of the authors and does not reflect the views of affiliated institutions or societies.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Lydia J. Wilson

Lydia J. Wilson, PhD, is an Instructor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Her research incorporates big data, image analysis, and data mining to reveal the relation between physical radiation exposures and their biologic health effects with the goal of improving long-term health outcomes of childhood cancer survivors.

Tien T. Tang

Tien T. Tang, PhD, is a Postdoctoral Associate in the Department of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine. Her research interest includes understanding the effect of radiation therapy on normal and cancer tissue using translational imaging techniques and computational models to predict treatment response.

Jade Moore

Jade Moore, PhD, is Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University of California, San Francisco. Her research focuses on understanding the tumor microenvironment and immune landscape and its role in both local tumor control and systemic disease using single cell analysis, imaging and bioinformatics to ultimately increase patient response to radiation therapy in combination with targeted therapies.

Britta Langen

Britta Langen, PhD, is a Visiting Instructor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at UT Southwestern Medical Center. Her pre-clinical research focuses on combined modality radiotherapy via radiosensitizing compounds. Her basic research comprises molecular radiation biomarker discovery and development of machine learning pipelines for omics data analysis.

Julie Constanzo

Julie Constanzo, PhD, is Research Scientist in Pr. J-P. Pouget's Laboratory at IRCM, Inserm France. She obtained her PhD in Physics and Radiobiology in 2013 (University Lyon, France). Her research project focuses on non-targeted effects caused by targeted radionuclide therapy including both intercellular communications and the immune response.