During her four-year term on the Presidential track, Dr. Vapiwala will represent the society’s 10,000 members, who include physicians, physicists, biologists, dosimetrists, radiation therapists, nurses and other professionals involved in radiation oncology care. Dr. Vapiwala will serve one year each as President-elect, President, Chair of the Board of Directors and Immediate Past Chair. Drs. Wright, Ng, Corso and Siker will serve two-year terms as Vice Chairs, followed by two-year terms as Chairs of their respective councils.

Dr. Vapiwala is the Eli Glatstein, MD Endowed Professor and a Vice Chair in the department of radiation oncology at the University of Pennsylvania, where she also serves as Dean of Admissions for the Perelman School of Medicine. From 2019 to 2023, Dr. Vapiwala served on the ASTRO Board of Directors as Secretary/Treasurer and chaired the ASTRO Finance/Audit Committee, playing a pivotal role in maintaining the Society’s financial health during the pandemic. During her previous Board tenure, she was instrumental in advancing initiatives related to radiation oncology workforce analysis, trainee resource expansion and early career member engagement. Before serving on the Board, she was president of the Association of Directors of Radiation Oncology Programs (ADROP).

"Serving ASTRO in this role is a tremendous honor, responsibility and opportunity for me to listen to and learn from our members. By engaging voices throughout the radiation oncology community and cultivating new and existing partnerships, I will strive to generate deeper understanding of and appreciation for our field, within and beyond ASTRO,” said Dr. Vapiwala.

“Radiation oncology epitomizes high quality, high value care, and we can continue to advance this care through greater investment in patient-centered research, education and health policy. As President-elect, I will advocate on behalf of our members and patients to highlight the critical importance of radiation therapy as a lifesaving treatment and to help address the challenges facing our specialty.”

Key policy issues for Dr. Vapiwala include strengthening support for scientific research and innovation, expanding patient access to radiation therapy and promoting a supportive environment for all radiation oncology professionals. “I aim to foster a successful, united future for our specialty by engaging with our diverse membership, gathering stakeholder perspectives and encouraging conversations on a broad range of issues impacting our field and how we care for our patients,” she said.

A nationally recognized expert in treating patients with prostate and other genitourinary cancers, Dr. Vapiwala is a member of the National Cancer Institute’s Prostate Cancer Task Force and the JAMA Oncology editorial board. She also serves on committees involving prostate cancer detection and treatment with the National Comprehensive Cancer Network and the National Clinical Trials Network and is the principal investigator of multiple clinical trials.

Dr. Vapiwala also publishes extensively on topics affecting clinical practice, medical training and the physician workforce. She has chaired multiple committees fostering partnerships between radiation, medical and surgical oncologists, and she recently completed a term as Chair of the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education’s Residency Review Committee for Radiation Oncology.

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