Tom Pickles, MB MD MRCP FRCPC
Professor
University of British Columbia (UBC)
Department of Surgery, Division of Radiotherapy and Developmental Radiotherapeutics
Active Staff – Radiation Oncologist
British Columbia Cancer Agency (BCCA) – Vancouver Centre *
Active Staff, Vancouver Hospital & Health Sciences (VHHSC)
Physician-in-Chief of the BCCA Particle Therapy Program
City: Vancouver
Hospital Authority: Provincial Health Services
Address: BCCA-VCC
600 West 10th Avenue
Vancouver, BC V5Z 4E6
Phone (direct): 604 877-6000 ext.2402 Phone (secretary): ext.2665
Email: tom.pickles@ubc.ca
Major Clinical Focus –
Prostate cancer (including brachytherapy), lymphoid malignancies and ocular tumours.
Other clinical and research interests relate to access to cancer services, radio-immunotherapy for lymphomas and particle therapy of ocular tumours.
EDUCATION
• Doctor of Medicine, University of London, United Kingdom, 1996
• Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery, University of London, United Kingdom, 1980
• Bachelor of Science (Honours), University of London, United Kingdom, 1977
SPECIALIST TRAINING
• Fellow of The Royal College of Physicians of Canada, Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada, Canada, 1994
• Licentiate of the Medical Council of Canada, Canada, 1993
• Accredited in Clinical Oncology, Royal College of Radiologists, United Kingdom, 1991
• Fellow of The Royal College of Radiologists, Royal College of Radiologists, United Kingdom, 1989
• Member of The Royal College of Physicians, Royal College of Physicians, United Kingdom, 1984
Biographic Summary ( Background, Academic Interests and Activities, Clinical Activities )
Research interests include particle therapy of prostate cancer, prostate outcomes analysis, PSA kinetics and active surveillance for early prostate cancer. He has held NCIC research grants exploring altered fractionation in prostate cancer radiation therapy, patterns of care studies in prostate cancer, and improving cancer outcomes by optimizing the accessibility and quality of radiotherapy. He actively participates in local, national and international studies of prostate cancer. He has authored over 100 peer-reviewed publications.
He was Chair of the BCCA Genito-Urinary Tumour Group from 1999 until September 2005. He sat on the executives of the NCIC-CTG GU site group and the Canadian Urology Oncology Group. He was President of the Canadian Association of Radiation Oncology, 2005-7. He was a member of the Communication Team of the now disbanded NCIC Socio-Behavioural Cancer Research Network.
PUBLICATIONS (selected 10 most significant)
1. Pickles T, Hamm J, Morris J, Schreiber W, Tyldesley S. Incomplete testosterone suppression with LHRH agonists: Does it happen, and does it matter? BJU Int. May Early view on line, 2012.
2. Buyyounouski MK, Pickles T, Kestin LL, Allison R, Williams SG. Validating the interval to biochemical failure for the identification of potentially lethal prostate cancer. J Clin Oncol. 2012 May 20;30(15):1857-63.
3. Williams S, Buyyounouski M, Kestin L, Duchesne G, Pickles T. Predictors of androgen deprivation therapy efficacy combined with prostatic irradiation: the central role of tumor stage and radiation dose. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2011 Mar 1;79(3):724-31.
4. Pickles T, Ruether JD, Weir L, Carlson L, Jakulj F. Psychosocial barriers to active surveillance for the management of early prostate cancer and a strategy for increased acceptance. BJU Int. 2007 May 26.
5. Palma D, Pickles T, Tyldesley S. Obesity as a predictor of biochemical recurrence and survival after radiation therapy for prostate cancer. BJU Int. 2007 Aug;100(2):315-9.
6. Hack TF, Pickles T, Bultz BD, Dean Ruether J, Degner LF. Impact of providing audiotapes of primary treatment consultations to men with prostate cancer: a multi-site, randomized, controlled trial. Psychooncology. 2007 Jun;16(6):543-52.
7. Pickles T. Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) bounce and other fluctuations: which biochemical relapse definition is least prone to PSA false calls? An analysis of 2030 men treated for prostate cancer with external beam or brachytherapy with or without adjuvant androgen deprivation therapy. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 2006 Apr 1;64(5):1355-9.
8. Pickles T, Kim-Sing C, Morris WJ, Tyldesley S, Paltiel C. Evaluation of the Houston biochemical relapse definition in men treated with prolonged neoadjuvant and adjuvant androgen ablation, and assessment of follow-up lead-time bias. International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics. 2003;57(1):11-8.
9. Pickles T, Goodman GB, Fryer CJ, Bowen J, Coldman AJ, Duncan GG, Graham P, McKenzie M, Morris WJ, Rheaume DE, Syndikus I. Pion conformal radiation of prostate cancer: results of a randomized study. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 1999;43(1):47-55.
10. Pickles T, Goodman GB, Rheaume DE, Duncan GG, Fryer CJ, Bhimji S, Ludgate C, Syndikus I, Graham P, Dimitrov M, Bowen J. Pion radiation for high grade astrocytoma: results of a randomized study. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 1997;37(3):491-7.
* The British Columbia Cancer Agency (BCCA)-Vancouver Centre (VC) is the largest academic cancer centre for the BCCA, located in downtown Vancouver and treating about one third of the radiation oncology cancer patients in the Province of BC. Over 4360 cancer patients are seen each year in the radiation oncology department. There are 20 Radiation Oncology (RO) physician faculty with full disease site specialization and clinical programs of excellence, 2 General Practice (Internist) Oncology Physicians, 3 Clinical Fellows and 10 RO residents. The BCCA-Vancouver Centre also has 17 physicists and a graduate training program in physics, 15 nurses, >60 radiation therapists clerks, secretaries and many others within radiation oncology. General capabilities include 9 Linacs (including Truebeam), 1 cobalt, VMAT (first developed in the BCCA-VC), IMRT, SBRT, IGRT, HDR and LDR brachytherapy suites, and Protons (at the TRIUMF centre). The Vancouver Centre radiation oncology department conducts all levels of research (basic, translational, clinical, population), and is the main educational institution in BC for the training of graduate (residents) and undergraduate (medical) students. The interdisciplinary Radiation Oncology team is part of the even larger multidisciplinary and provincial teams.