Gail Distefano

"Gail is a Senior Radiotherapy Physicist using radiotherapy to manage and treat cancer.Gail is a collaborative and intuitive individual, who loves solving problems and finding out new ways to do things. These traits are important for her role as a Radiotherapy Physicist whereby she is continually aiming to improve radiotherapy treatments for people suffering from cancer. This fits with Gail’s ‘Explorer’ and ‘Innovator’ side of her personality whereby she is also researching new ideas to help improve healthcare. Gail is also a ‘Trainer’ type as she loves to meet people and discuss ideas, she has a true passion to collaborate and share knowledge. "

"As a Senior Radiotherapy Physicist, Gail’s main aim is to improve radiotherapy treatments for those suffering from cancer. Radiation can kill cancer cells but needs to be very carefully used. She calculates the best methods and dose distributions for radiotherapy treatment targeted at each patient’s specific cancer. There is no such thing as a ‘typical day’ in Gail’s job, which is great for her. The days are very variable as they depend on the projects that she is involved with. Typically, there will be problem solving, radiation dose measurements, quality assurance checks of equipment, creating radiotherapy plans, giving advice to doctors and medical teams on choice of radiation type. Lots of variety and she is helping patients to manage and improve their health. In addition to this, Gail has an opportunity to travel to national and international conferences. When there are new advancements in treatments and technology, it is also necessary to visit other centres to learn and share knowledge, for example Gail had a trip to Montreal in Canada!"

"At University Gail studied Maths and Physics before going on to complete a master’s degree in medical physics. Her inspiration for the job she is now in came from when teaching an A-Level Medical Physics Module. This inspired her to visit an oncology centre, she got so excited about being able to use physics in such a practical way in a healthcare setting, that she decided to work in this field. Whilst she loves physics, Gail really enjoys patient interaction – this gives her both. Gail then specialised as a Radiotherapy Scientist by completing the NHS Training Scheme. This scheme is an excellent way to get into a specific healthcare area – it allows you to be trained, gain a masters and be paid!Whilst Gail was training, her salary was £28,050 and when she qualified this increased to £32,000."

"In Gail’s spare time she enjoys baking and cycling. She also has been a Cub Scout leader for many years, which she loves doing. Gail has 3 children who she loves spending time with and engaging in different activities together. Interestingly, when Gail was completing her BSc she also trained as a pilot and obtained a Private Pilot’s licence. Whilst she loves flying, ultimately she was drawn to working in healthcare as she wanted to make a positive difference to those suffering from cancer. Gail would like to do more Research and Development and has just been awarded a Research Fellowship to do a PhD. This will allow her to do research whilst still receiving her salary and is the first step towards her ambition of becoming a leading Clinical Academic! "