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The first clinical PhD in nuclear medicine completed at the UFS

18 April 2024 | Story Andre Damons | Photo Charl Devenish

Dr Osayande Evbuomwan, Senior Lecturer and Medical Specialist in the Department of Nuclear Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, at the University of the Free State (UFS), graduated with the first clinical PhD in nuclear medicine completed at the UFS.

He graduated on Thursday (18 April 2024) at the university’s autumn graduation ceremonies when the Faculty of Health Sciences conferred degrees on its graduation class of 2024.

Dr Evbuomwan, the man behind his department using Lutetium 177 PSMA (Lu-177 PSMA) therapy and now Actinium 225 PSMA therapy to treatment metastatic castrate resistant prostate cancer (MCRPC) – an advanced stage prostate cancer, said his PhD is about using a special radiopharmaceutical called Technetium 99m ECDG to detect active disease in the joints of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

More opportunities for similar degrees

This research has won him the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) International Best Abstract Award for South Africa during last year’s SNMMI 2023 Annual Meeting in the US.

“I am very grateful, and at the same time, proud about this achievement (his PhD). This qualification will definitely give more opportunities for further similar degrees at the department. So yes, I feel very happy and fulfilled.

“Rheumatoid arthritis is a debilitating disease with associated morbidity that can lead to serious joint deformity and destruction. The need for an investigation with a very high diagnostic accuracy in detecting active disease is needed, especially in the detection of subclinical disease. Few prior studies in the literature had shown promising results with Tc 99m ECDG imaging in this regard. So, we decided to conduct a proper prospective study to test this hypothesis,” says Dr Evbuomwan.

This research, he explains, was also aimed at finding out if the new nuclear medicine radiopharmaceutical for the identification of active disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis can also offer prognostic information. This aspect of the study concluded that this particular radiopharmaceutical (Tc – 99m ECDG) is highly sensitive in identifying synovitis (inflammation of the membrane that protects joints) and is capable of offering prognostic information in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

This was the first prospective study to assess the prognostic value of this radiopharmaceutical in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, Dr Evbuomwan says.

Researching theranostics in the future

According to him, he had a smooth journey to completing his PhD – something he contributes to support from the fantastic team of three supervisors, the assistant who prepared the radiopharmaceutical, the rheumatology department, the radiographers and nurses at the Department of Nuclear Medicine, and most importantly, his wife and two daughters.

His passion for research, growth and the practice of nuclear medicine were his major motivators on this journey.

Dr Evbuomwan is currently looking at the possibility of starting research on theranostics. The only stumbling block for now, he says, is that the department still does not have a PET/CT camera, as this is very vital in today’s nuclear medicine practice. However, together with the Free State Department of Health, they are working hard to secure one.

“I now want to focus on nuclear medicine therapy and its promotion. This includes both imaging and treatment (theranostics) of certain cancers, most especially prostate cancer, neuroendocrine neoplasms, thyroid cancers and the neuroectodermal tumours. I also want to focus on being involved with the training of more registrars at the department of nuclear medicine and increasing the awareness of nuclear medicine amongst colleagues in the Free State,” says Dr Evbuomwan about his future plans.

News Archive

A real indaba it was

2010-09-07

Pictured from the left, are: Prof. Dennis Francis (Dean), Prof. Rita Niemann (Director: Postgraduate Studies and Research) and Prof. Rob Pattman (Keynote speaker: UKZN).

No expert panels! No rubrics! Only a fair measure of healthy anxiety that goes with public speaking!

These features describe the meeting that staff members from the Faculty of Education recently had at Indaba Lodge on the banks of the Modder River. The purpose of this get-together was to create a time and space where staff members could not only celebrate their own research efforts, but also acknowledge, support and validate one another’s work.

The day kicked off with the dean’s research vision for the faculty. Thereafter seven staff members doing their Ph.D.s were introduced. Their presentations were followed by inputs from the guest speaker, Prof. Rob Pattman from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). He congratulated the presenters on their cutting-edge research, their eloquence and the manner in which they managed to communicate complex matters in simple ways. Ideas he shared from his own research on social identities and critical agency (with a focus on gender and race) served to affirm the relevance of the topics presented by the Ph.D. candidates in transforming the education system as well as the South African society as a whole.

A festive lunch, in honour of retiring Prof. Johan van Staden, brought an affective dimension to the Indaba in the form of heart-felt goodbye messages from colleagues who had shared his academic life for more than 20 years.

After lunch five master’s students had the opportunity to share their research in the form of poster presentations. A lively interest among participants and critical, but constructive questions characterised this session. A potpourri session followed, comprising work in progress, completed surveys, research awards and innovative research methods.

The wrap-up by Prof. Dennis in no uncertain terms affirmed that researchers in the Faculty of Education not only crossed the Modder River, but also the proverbial Rubicon on 21 August. It was envisaged that henceforth:
- Supervision will take on a collaborative character.
- Soon a research forum for Ph.D. students and their supervisors will be established where these students and supervisors can start practising their agency.
- Instead of relying on outside experts who come and “tell” faculty staff members what to do, insiders should start building their own vibrant research-based practices by forming reading groups to discuss seminal works (e.g. Foucault and Freire) and research methodologies (e.g. Burke’s Pentad).

The Indaba was aptly concluded by one of the participants who, on behalf of all attendees, thanked and congratulated the dean on the initiative to give impetus to research. Analogous to the 2010 slogan, Feel it, it is here!, he said: “I feel so inspired and empowered, I can almost taste it!”

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