Suman Shrestha, PHD
Department of Radiation Physics, Division of Radiation Oncology
About Dr. Suman Shrestha
Dr. Shrestha, Assistant Professor of Radiation Physics (Patient Care) at MD Anderson’s Thoracic Physics Service, specializes in advanced radiation therapy, computational dosimetry, and survivorship research. His work includes development of models to quantify stray neutron doses in proton therapy, with current research advancing organ-specific dosimetry phantoms and cardiac substructure risk prediction models for radiation-related heart disease, enhancing dose-response understanding and treatment planning. He has chaired AAPM’s WGSTR and ISoRED’s WGC, demonstrating dedication to medical physics collaboration and mentorship.
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Assistant Professor, Department of Radiation Physics - Patient Care, Division of Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2022 | UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, US, Medical Physics, Ph.D |
| 2018 | Louisiana State University, Louisiana, US, Medical Physics, M.S |
| 2013 | Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, NP, Physics, M.S |
| 2010 | Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, NP, Physics, B.S |
Postgraduate Training
| 2023-2025 | Medical Physics Resident, Therapeutic Medical Physics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas |
| 2022-2023 | Postdoctoral Fellow, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas |
Experience & Service
Administrative Appointments/Responsibilities
Senior Chair/ Consultant, American Association of Physicist in Medicine (AAPM), 2022 - 2022
Chair, American Association of Physicist in Medicine (AAPM), 2021 - 2021
Chair, International Society of Radiation Epidemiology and Dosimetry (ISoRED), Houston, Texas, 2020 - Present
Vice-Chair, International Society of Radiation Epidemiology and Dosimetry, 2020 - 2020
Vice-Chair,, American Association of Physicist in Medicine (AAPM), 2020 - 2020
Honors & Awards
| 2023 | Best Oral Presentation (3rd Place), MD Anderson Research Day Competition |
| 2023 - 2024 | Science Council Associate Mentorship Program (SCAMP) Awardee, AAPM |
| 2022 | Jesse B. Heath, Jr. Family Legacy Award 2021-2022, UT MDACC UTHealth GSBS |
| 2022 | MDACC/UTHealth GSBS Travel Award, UT Health GSBS |
| 2022 - 2023 | The Dade W. Moeller Scholarship 2022-2023,, Health Physics Society |
| 2022 | Health Physics Society Travel Grant, Health Physics Society |
| 2021 | Best Manuscript Award, Dept. of Radiation Physics, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| 2021 | Best Oral Presentation (1st Place), Med Phys Slam Oral Competition, SWAAPM Annual Meeting |
| 2021 | Virtual Conference Award, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, UTHealth GSBS |
| 2021 | Medical Physics Graduate Student Scholarship 2021, American College of Radiology |
| 2021 | Young Investigator, Cardiovascular Research, Pediatric Normal Tissue Effects in Clinic (PENTEC) |
| 2020 | Best Poster Award (1st Place and 3rd Place), Young Investigator Symposium, SWAAPM |
| 2020 | Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences International Travel Award,, UT Health GSBS |
| 2020 - 2021 | The Robert S. Landauer Sr. Fellowship 2022-2021, Health Physics Society |
| 2020 | Health Physics Society Travel Grant 2021, Health Physics Society |
| 2019 | The AAPM Expanding Horizons Grant, American Association of Physicist in Medicine |
| 2019 | UT MDACC, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences Travel Award,, UT Health GSBS |
| 2019 | NCI International Travel Fellowship (ISoRED) National Cancer Institute |
| 2019 - 2020 | Sylvan Rodriguez Foundation Scholarship honoring George M. Stancel, Ph.D. 2019-2020, UT Health |
| 2019 - 2020 | Marilyn and Frederick R. Lummis, Jr. M.D., Fellowship,, UT Health and Science Center |
| 2017 - 2018 | Health Physics Society Travel Grant, Health Physics Society |
| 2017 | Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS) Career Development Award, St. Jude Children’s Hospital |
Professional Memberships
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Bates JE, Rancati T, Keshavarz H, Gagliardi G, Aznar MC, Howell RM, Shrestha S, Moiseenko V, Yorke E, Armenian S, Kremer L, Chen MH, van der Pal HJ, Cutter DJ, Constine LS, Hodgson D. Cardiac Disease in Childhood Cancer Survivors Treated With Radiation Therapy: A PENTEC Comprehensive Review. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 119(2):522-532, 2024. e-Pub 2024. PMID: 37061912.
- Bates JE, Shrestha S, Liu Q, Smith SA, Mulrooney DA, Leisenring W, Gibson T, Robison LL, Chow EJ, Oeffinger KC, Armstrong GT, Constine LS, Hoppe BS, Lee C, Yasui Y, Howell RM. Cardiac Substructure Radiation Dose and Risk of Late Cardiac Disease in Survivors of Childhood Cancer: A Report From the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study. J Clin Oncol 41(22):3826-3838, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 37307512.
- Owens CA, Rigaud B, Ludmir EB, Gupta AC, Shrestha S, Paulino AC, Smith SA, Peterson CB, Kry SF, Lee C, Henderson TO, Armstrong GT, Brock KK, Howell RM. Development and validation of a population-based anatomical colorectal model for radiation dosimetry in late effects studies of survivors of childhood cancer. Radiother Oncol 176:118-126, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 36063983.
- Shrestha S, Newhauser WD, Donahue WP, Perez-Andujar A. Stray neutron radiation exposures from proton therapy: physics-based analytical models of neutron spectral fluence, kerma and absorbed dose. Phys Med Biol 67(12), 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35613603.
- Gupta AC, Owens CA, Shrestha S, Lee C, Smith SA, Weathers RE, Netherton T, Balter PA, Kry SF, Followill DS, Griffin KT, Long JP, Armstrong GT, Howell RM. Body region-specific 3D age-scaling functions for scaling whole-body computed tomography anatomy for pediatric late effects studies. Biomed Phys Eng Express 8(2), 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 34874300.
- Shrestha S, Bates JE, Liu Q, Smith SA, Oeffinger KC, Chow EJ, Gupta AC, Owens CA, Constine LS, Hoppe BS, Leisenring WM, Qiao Y, Weathers RE, Court LE, Pinnix CC, Kry SF, Mulrooney DA, Armstrong GT, Yasui Y, Howell RM. Radiation therapy related cardiac disease risk in childhood cancer survivors: Updated dosimetry analysis from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study. Radiother Oncol 163:199-208, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34454975.
- Shrestha S, Gupta AC, Bates JE, Lee C, Owens CA, Hoppe BS, Constine LS, Smith SA, Qiao Y, Weathers RE, Yasui Y, Court LE, Paulino AC, Pinnix CC, Kry SF, Followill DS, Armstrong GT, Howell RM. Development and validation of an age-scalable cardiac model with substructures for dosimetry in late-effects studies of childhood cancer survivors. Radiother Oncol 153:163-171, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 33075392.
- Gupta AC, Shrestha S, Owens CA, Smith SA, Qiao Y, Weathers RE, Balter PA, Kry SF, Howell RM. Development of an age-scalable 3D computational phantom in DICOM standard for late effects studies of childhood cancer survivors. Biomed Phys Eng Express 6(6), 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 34584772.
Review Articles
- Newhauser WD, Schneider C, Wilson L, Shrestha S, Donahue W. A REVIEW OF ANALYTICAL MODELS OF STRAY RADIATION EXPOSURES FROM PHOTON- AND PROTON-BEAM RADIOTHERAPIES. Radiat Prot Dosimetry 180(1-4):245-251, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29177488.
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified November 17, 2025