Ronald J. Jaszczak, PhD

Professor Emeritus in the Department of Radiology

Department / Division
Radiology / Radiology - General

Address:
2919 Reynolda Circle
Durham, NC 27712

Office Telephone:
(919) 684-7685

Training:

• PhD, University of Florida, 1968

Research Interests:
We currently have a large effort in quantitative nuclear medicine imaging, specifically in SPECT. This research covers basic instrumentation development, investigation and development of new image reconstruction algorithms, simulations, and evaluation of new quantitative techniques. Quantitation has been an ongoing topic of research in our group, and requires understanding of the physical phenomena involved in SPECT acquisition. Photon attenuation, scatter, limited spatial resolution, and image noise all contribute to the inherent quantitative inaccuracy in SPECT images, and must be compensated for. Our group is investigating ways to solve these problems through improved hardware, simulation and reconstruction.

A major thrust of research in our group concerns improving imaging methods for evaluating myocardial perfusion and breast tumor characterization using Technetium-99, the most widely used nuclide. Our group has investigated alternate collimator design (fan-beam, half cone-beam, pinhole and astigmatic geometries), simulation methods, iterative reconstruction techniques, visualization, receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis, and correlation of images with other imaging modalities. Alternate collimator designs can improve the number of photons detected and therby reduce image noise, or in the case of pinhole collimation, can be used to magnify images significantly, increasing the effective resolution for small objects.

We have developed and tested new filtered backprojection and iterative reconstruction methods that model non-uniform attenuation and distance-dependent detectors response. Iterative reconstruction methods, although computationally time consuming, allow proper correction for the degrading effects. We have performed Monte Carlo simulation to determine collimator and reconstruction properties which cannot be measured easily. Simulation provides a way to divide the degrading physical effects into components for separate study. Both converging beam and parallel beam collimator geometries have been modeled and novel ways of improving the efficiency of the computationally intensive methods have been introduced.

Publications:

• Metzler, SD; Vemulapalli, S; Jaszczak, RJ; Akabani, G; Chin, BB. Feasibility of whole-body functional mouse imaging using helical pinhole SPECT. Molecular Imaging and Biology. 2010;12:35-41. Abstract
  
  
• Zhang, J; Ma, J; Zhou, S; Hubbs, JL; Wong, TZ; Folz, RJ; Evans, ES; Jaszczak, RJ; Clough, R; Marks, LB. Radiation-induced reductions in regional lung perfusion: 0.1-12 year data from a prospective clinical study. International Journal of Radiation: Oncology - Biology - Physics. 2010;76:425-432. Abstract
  
  
• Ter-Antonyan, R; Jaszczak, RJ; Greer, KL; Bowsher, JE; Metzler, SD; Coleman, RE. Combination of converging collimators for high-sensitivity brain SPECT. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 2009;50:1548-1556. Abstract
  
  
• Ter-Antonyan, R; Jaszczak, RJ; Bowsher, JE; Greer, KL; Metzler, SD. Quantitative Evaluation of Half-Cone-Beam Scan Paths in Triple-Camera Brain SPECT. IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science. 2008;55:2518-2526. Abstract
  
  
• Chin, BB; Metzler, SD; Lemaire, A; Curcio, A; Vemulapalli, S; Greer, KL; Petry, NA; Turkington, TG; Coleman, RE; Rockman, H; Jaszczak, RJ. Left ventricular functional assessment in mice: feasibility of high spatial and temporal resolution ECG-gated blood pool SPECT. Radiology. 2007;245:440-448. Abstract
  
  
• Ter-Antonyan, R; Jaszczak, RJ; Bowsher, JE; Greer, KL; Metzler, SD. Brain SPECT Simulation Using Half-Cone-Beam Collimation and Single-Revolution Helical-Path Acquisition. IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science. 2007;54:475-479. Abstract
  
  
• Vemulapalli, S; Metzler, SD; Akabani, G; Petry, NA; Niehaus, NJ; Liu, X; Patil, NH; Greer, KL; Jaszczak, RJ; Coleman, RE; Dong, C; Goldschmidt-Clermont, PJ; Chin, BB. Cell therapy in murine atherosclerosis: in vivo imaging with high-resolution helical SPECT. Radiology. 2007;242:198-207. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ. The early years of single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT): an anthology of selected reminiscences. Physics in Medicine and Biology. 2006;51:R99-115. Abstract
  
  
• Metzler, SD; Accorsi, R; Novak, JR; Ayan, AS; Jaszczak, RJ. On-axis sensitivity and resolution of a slit-slat collimator. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 2006;47:1884-1890. Abstract
  
  
• Metzler, SD; Greer, KL; Jaszczak, RJ. Determination of mechanical and electronic shifts for pinhole SPECT using a single point source. IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging. 2005;24:361-370. Abstract
  
  
• Metzler, SD; Jaszczak, RJ; Patil, NH; Vemulapalli, S; Akabani, G; Chin, BB. Molecular imaging of small animals with a triple-head SPECT system using pinhole collimation. IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging. 2005;24:853-862. Abstract
  
  
• Tornai, MP; Bowsher, JE; Jaszczak, RJ; Pieper, BC; Greer, KL; Hardenbergh, PH; Coleman, RE. Mammotomography with pinhole incomplete circular orbit SPECT. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 2003;44:583-593. Abstract
  
  
• Bowsher, JE; Tornai, MP; Peter, J; González Trotter, DE; Krol, A; Gilland, DR; Jaszczak, RJ. Modeling the axial extension of a transmission line source within iterative reconstruction via multiple transmission sources. IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging. 2002;21:200-215. Abstract
  
  
• Lind, PA; Marks, LB; Hollis, D; Fan, M; Zhou, SM; Munley, MT; Shafman, TD; Jaszczak, RJ; Coleman, RE. Receiver operating characteristic curves to assess predictors of radiation-induced symptomatic lung injury. International Journal of Radiation: Oncology - Biology - Physics. 2002;54:340-347. Abstract
  
  
• Metzler, SD; Bowsher, JE; Greer, KL; Jaszczak, RJ. Analytic determination of the pinhole collimator's point-spread function and RMS resolution with penetration. IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging. 2002;21:878-887. Abstract
  
  
• Woel, RT; Munley, MT; Hollis, D; Fan, M; Bentel, G; Anscher, MS; Shafman, T; Coleman, RE; Jaszczak, RJ; Marks, LB. The time course of radiation therapy-induced reductions in regional perfusion: a prospective study with >5 years of follow-up. International Journal of Radiation: Oncology - Biology - Physics. 2002;52:58-67. Abstract
  
  
• Metzler, SD; Bowsher, JE; Smith, MF; Jaszczak, RJ. Analytic determination of pinhole collimator sensitivity with penetration. IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging. 2001;20:730-741. Abstract
  
  
• LaCroix, KJ; Tsui, BM; Frey, EC; Jaszczak, RJ. Receiver operating characteristic evaluation of iterative reconstruction with attenuation correction in 99mTc-sestamibi myocardial SPECT images. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 2000;41:502-513. Abstract
  
  
• Munley, MT; Marks, LB; Scarfone, C; Sibley, GS; Patz, EF; Turkington, TG; Jaszczak, RJ; Gilland, DR; Anscher, MS; Coleman, RE. Multimodality nuclear medicine imaging in three-dimensional radiation treatment planning for lung cancer: challenges and prospects. Lung Cancer. 1999;23:105-114. Abstract
  
  
• Scarfone, C; Jaszczak, RJ; Gilland, DR; Greer, KL; Munley, MT; Marks, LB; Coleman, RE. Quantitative pulmonary single photon emission computed tomography for radiotherapy applications. Medical Physics. 1999;26:1579-1588. Abstract
  
  
• Tornai, MP; Jaszczak, RJ; Turkington, TG; Coleman, RE. Small-animal PET: advent of a new era of PET research. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 1999;40:1176-1179. Abstract
  
  
• Scarfone, C; Jaszczak, RJ; Li, J; Soo, MS; Smith, MF; Greer, KL; Coleman, RE. Breast tumour imaging using incomplete circular orbit pinhole SPET: a phantom study. Nuclear Medicine Communications. 1997;18:1077-1086. Abstract
  
  
• Li, J; Jaszczak, RJ; Greer, KL; Gilland, DR; DeLong, DM; Coleman, RE. Evaluation of SPECT quantification of radiopharmaceutical distribution in canine myocardium. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 1995;36:278-286. Abstract
  
  
• Gilland, DR; Jaszczak, RJ; Turkington, TG; Greer, KL; Coleman, RE. Volume and activity quantitation with iodine-123 SPECT. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 1994;35:1707-1713. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ; Gilland, DR; Hanson, MW; Jang, S; Greer, KL; Coleman, RE. Fast transmission CT for determining attenuation maps using a collimated line source, rotatable air-copper-lead attenuators and fan-beam collimation. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 1993;34:1577-1586. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ; Li, J; Wang, H; Coleman, RE. Three-dimensional SPECT reconstruction of combined cone beam and parallel beam data. Physics in Medicine and Biology. 1992;37:535-548. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ; Greer, KL; Coleman, RE. SPECT using a specially designed cone beam collimator. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 1988;29:1398-1405. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ; Floyd, CE; Manglos, SH; Greer, KL; Coleman, RE. Cone beam collimation for single photon emission computed tomography: analysis, simulation, and image reconstruction using filtered backprojection. Medical Physics. 1986;13:484-489. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ; Coleman, RE. Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). Principles and instrumentation. Investigative Radiology. 1985;20:897-910. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ; Greer, KL; Floyd, CE; Harris, CC; Coleman, RE. Improved SPECT quantification using compensation for scattered photons. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 1984;25:893-900. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ. Physical characteristics of SPECT systems, September, 1982. Journal of Computer Assisted Tomography: a radiological journal dedicated to the basic and clinical aspects of reconstructive tomography. 1982;6:1205-1215. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ; Whitehead, FR; Lim, CB; Coleman, RE. Lesion detection with single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) compared with conventional imaging. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 1982;23:97-102. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ; Chang, LT; Stein, NA; Moore, FE. Whole-body single-photon emission computed tomography using dual, large-field-of-view scintillation cameras. Physics in Medicine and Biology. 1979;24:1123-1143. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ; Murphy, PH; Huard, D; Burdine, JA. Radionuclide emission computed tomography of the head with 99mCc and a scintillation camera. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 1977;18:373-380. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ. Line spread response for a scintillation camera and movable filter plate system. Physics in Medicine and Biology. 1974;19:362-372. Abstract
  
  
• Jaszczak, RJ. Increased resolving power from scintillation cameras using electronic signal processing and a movable filter plate. Journal of Nuclear Medicine. 1973;14:14-20. Abstract