What You Should Know About Radiation Oncology: A Podcast with Anish Butala, Emily Martin and Evie Kalmar

What You Should Know About Radiation Oncology: A Podcast with Anish Butala, Emily Martin and Evie Kalmar

Author: Alex Smith, Eric Widera June 12, 2025 Duration: 49:44

If you're anything like me, you might find the process of what happens to patients when they visit a radiation oncologist somewhat mysterious. During my training, I didn't receive much education about radiation oncology, and I'm not entirely sure what some of the terms mean (hypofractionated means fewer sessions, right?). Well, today's podcast aims to clear up all these uncertainties.

We've invited Anish Butala, the Chief of the Palliative Radiotherapy Service at Penn Medicine, and Emily Martin, a palliative care doctor and past president of the Society for Palliative Radiation Oncology (SPRO), to explain everything we should know about radiation oncology. Additionally, Evie Kalmar, who suggested today's topic, will join us as one of our guest hosts.

Tune in and we will walk you through the patient's journey from the initial planning visit to the final treatment, discuss common indications like bone and brain metastases, hear about when to consider steroid therapy, and highlight radiation therapy emergencies.


Hosted by UCSF physicians Alex Smith and Eric Widera, GeriPal-A Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine Podcast creates a vital space for conversation at the intersection of aging and serious illness care. This isn't a dry lecture series; it's a dynamic dialogue where Eric and Alex bring on leading experts to unpack the complexities of geriatric and palliative medicine. They delve into the latest research that should change practice, tackle the ethical dilemmas that provoke debate, and explore the nuanced clinical challenges that professionals face daily. The tone is engaging and often surprisingly lighthearted, with moments of humor and even the occasional song, making profound topics more accessible. Whether you're a clinician, nurse, social worker, or any professional dedicated to this field, this podcast offers a blend of evidence-based insights and practical wisdom you can use. It’s a resource that acknowledges the weight of the work while fostering connection and continued learning. For those seeking formal education credits, AMA PRA Category 1 CME and MOC credit are also available through the show. Tune in to join a community committed to improving care for older adults and those with serious illness.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

GeriPal - A Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine Podcast
Podcast Episodes
How Pharma Invents Diseases: A Podcast with Adriane Fugh-Berman [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:03
Who gets to decide on what it means to have a disease? I posed this question a while back in reference to Alzheimer's disease. I'll save you from reading the article, but the main headline is that corporations are very m…
Palliative Care Nursing: Podcast with Betty Ferrell about ELNEC [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:39
As Betty Ferrell says on our podcast today, nurses play an essential role in care of people with serious illness. Who spends the most time with the patient in the infusion center? Doing home care? Hospice visits? In the…
The Promise and Pitfalls of AI in Medicine: Bob Wachter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:32
Eric asks the question that is on many of our minds - is the future of AI more Skynet from Terminator, in which AI takes over the world and drives humanity to the brink of extinction, or Wall-E, in which a benevolent and…
Surrogate Decision Making: Bernie Lo and Laurie Dornbrand [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:30
In 1983, a 25 year old Nancy Cruzan was thrown from her car while driving home in Missouri, landing in a water filled ditch. She was resuscitated by EMS, but did not regain higher brain function, and was eventually diagn…
Electronic Frailty Indexes: Kate Callahan, Ariela Orkaby, & Dae Kim [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:21
What is frailty? Kate Callahan relates a clear metaphor on today's podcast. A frail person is like an origami boat: fine in still water, but can't withstand a breeze, or waves. Fundamentally, frailty is about vulnerabili…

«1...678910