From July 4 to July 20, 2023, the “Lectures on Radiobiology of Subdivision of Precision Radiotherapy of Sichuan International Medical Exchange & Promotion Association” was successfully held, which was sponsored by Sichuan International Medical Exchange & Promotion Association (SCIMEA) and West China Hospital of Sichuan University, and organized by the Precision Radiotherapy Branch of SCIMEA.

The meeting was held in the way of online broadcasting, and Prof. George D. Wilson, an expert in radiobiology from the United States, was invited to give a lecture on the basic theories and cutting-edge progress of radiobiology, which attracted radiologists and scholars both at home and abroad to watch, with more than 11,000 viewers online.

At the beginning of the meeting, chairwoman of the meeting, Prof. Wang Xin from West China Hospital of Sichuan University, on behalf of the organizers of the meeting, expressed a warm welcome and sincere greetings to all experts and scholars participating in the meeting, and briefly introduced the schedule of the meeting. The lecture series is divided into 6 sessions, covering DNA damage and repair, factors affecting the biological effects of radiation, radiation and cell death, etc. After each session, participants can directly participate in the post-session exchanges to have in-depth discussions with Prof. George D. Wilson and explore the latest advances in radiobiology. Finally, Prof. Wang Xin wished this meeting a complete success.

In the first session, Prof. George D. Wilson gave a keynote lecture on “DNA Damage and Repair”. In his lecture, he first introduced the discovery of x-rays, and then briefed the different types of radiation and the physical property characteristics of radiation, analyzed the different DNA damages and chromosome damages caused by rays, the related repair mechanisms and consequences, so as to let all the experts attending the meeting have a deeper understanding of DNA damage and repair.

On July 6, the second lecture session was held as scheduled, which was hosted by Prof. Xue Jianxin from West China Hospital of Sichuan University. Prof. George D. Wilson centered on the topic “Factors Affecting Radiation Response”, systematically introduced several issues in different LET radiation, relative biological effectiveness (RBE), oxygen enhancement rate (OER), etc., which opened up a new horizon for the experts online.

On July 11, Prof. Shen Yali from West China Hospital of Sichuan University hosted the third lecture session, during which, Prof. George D. Wilson gave a presentation on “The 4R Principles of Radiobiology and the Relationship between Radiation Sensitivity and Cell Cycle”.

He summarized that the initial 4Rs of radiobiology are repair, re-oxidation, redistribution of cell cycles and re-population of cells, which affect the radiation response of cells at different times after exposure, and the combined effect of these factors will affect the sensitivity of cells to radiation, while the latest research has found that the impact of radiation sensitivity can be regarded as the 5Rs, which has further elaborated on the factors affecting radiosensitivity.

On July 13, Prof. Li Yan from West China Hospital of Sichuan University hosted the fourth lecture session, during which Prof. George D. Wilson shared the content related to “Radiation and Cell Death”.

He argued that the main pathways of most cell deaths include apoptosis, senescence, autophagy and necrosis, and that measuring one form of cell death (e.g., apoptosis) does not necessarily objectively reflect changes in the number of tumors or cell deaths due to the possible interoperability of different mechanisms of action. After the lecture, a number of experts in China discussed related issues with Prof. George D. Wilson, and the participants gained a lot.

On July 18, Prof. Peng Xingchen from West China Hospital of Sichuan University hosted the fifth lecture session, which was titled “Biological Basis of Radiation Dose, Cycle and Fractionated Radiation”. Prof. George D. Wilson shared several key techniques in radiotherapy, including radiation dose, radiation duration, and irradiation mode of the whole radiotherapy, which have provided reference for clinical practice.

On July 20, Prof. Wang Xin, chairwoman of the meeting, hosted the last lecture session, during which Prof. George D. Wilson shared the content related to “Radiobiological Effects on Normal Organs” and pointed out that the response of normal tissues to radiotherapy varies according to their reproductive state, tissue structure and irradiated volume, which have provided  reference for clinical practice.

At this point, all the agendas of this meeting were finished, and chairman of the meeting, Prof. Wang Xin from West China Hospital of Sichuan University, made a summary of the meeting and thanked Prof. George D. Wilson, an expert in radiobiology from the United States, for his wonderful sharing, and also thanked all the attendees for their active participation.

The success of this meeting will further enhance the professional skills of the practitioners in the field of tumor radiotherapy in Southwest China, ensure the quality and safety of tumor precision radiotherapy while promoting the development and innovation of tumor precision radiotherapy technology, and propel the communication and cooperation among tumor radiotherapy talents, so as to enhance the overall level of tumor precision radiotherapy.  It is expected all the colleagues in the field of radiotherapy will work together to promote the high-quality development of radiobiology in future!