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Robert Timmerman, M.D.

Robert Timmerman, M.D.

Titles and Appointments

Chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology

Professor & Chair

Endowed Title
Effie Marie Cain Distinguished Chair in Cancer Therapy Research
School
Medical School
Department
Radiation Oncology | Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center | Neurological Surgery

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For more information on the doctor and patient care, please visit the clinical profile.

  • Biography

    Robert D. Timmerman, M.D., FASTRO, FACR, is Professor and Chair of Radiation Oncology, Professor of Neurosurgery, and Effie Marie Cain Distinguished Chair in Cancer Therapy Research. His primary practice involves the treatment of adult and children with brain tumors.

    Dr. Timmerman graduated from Iowa State University with a bachelor's degree in nuclear engineering and a master's degree in reactor physics from the University of Tennessee. After finishing medical school in his home state of South Dakota, he completed a residency in radiation oncology at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. He was the principal investigator or co-investigator on several prospective trials designed to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of stereotactic body radiation therapy in lung, liver, spine, and pelvic sites. He is the national principal investigator of Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) trials using this therapy in patients with early stage lung cancer.

  • Education
    Other Post Graduate Training
    University of Tennessee at Knoxville (1986)
    Graduate School
    University of Tennessee at Knoxville (1986)
    Medical School
    University of South Dakota (1990)
    Internship
    McKennan Hospital (1991), Transitional Year
    Residency
    Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (1994), Radiation Oncology
  • Research Interest
    • Effect of SAbR on immune function and immunotherapy
    • Hypofractionated radiation therapy
    • Radiation response modifiers
    • Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT)
  • Publications
    Cone Beam Online Adaptive Radiation Therapy: A Promising Approach for Gastric Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue Lymphoma?
    Zhong X, Rahman M, Simmons A, Li X, Kozak M, Desai N, Timmerman R, Godley A, Cai B, Parsons D, Kumar KA, Lin MH Advances in Radiation Oncology 2025 Feb 10
    PULSAR Effect: Revealing potential synergies in combined radiation therapy and immunotherapy via differential equations
    Rouf S, Moore C, Saha D, Nguyen D, Bleile ML, Timmerman R, Peng H, Jiang S Journal of Theoretical Biology 2025 Jan 596
    Concerning Safety and Efficacy of Concurrent and Consolidative Durvalumab With Thoracic Radiation Therapy in PDL1-Unselected Stage III Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Brief Report
    Zhang Y, Iyengar P, Montalvo S, Westover KD, Rashdan S, Donthireddy K, Kim J, Dowell JE, Drapkin B, Bhalla S, Chukwuma C, Nadeem U, Ahn C, Timmerman RD, Gerber DE International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics 2025 Jan 121 68-74
    Centralized Quality Assurance of Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy for the Veterans Affairs Cooperative Studies Program Study Number 2005: A Phase 3 Randomized Trial of Lung Cancer Surgery or Stereotactic Radiotherapy for Operable Early-Stage Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (VALOR)
    Ritter TA, Timmerman RD, Hanfi HI, Shi H, Leiner MK, Feng H, Skinner VL, Robin LM, Odle C, Amador G, Sindowski T, Snodgrass AJ, Huang GD, Reda DJ, Slatore C, Sears CR, Cornwell LD, Karas TZ, Harpole DH, Palta J, Moghanaki D Practical Radiation Oncology 2025 Jan 15 e29-e39
    Multiomics-Based Outcome Prediction in Personalized Ultra-Fractionated Stereotactic Adaptive Radiotherapy (PULSAR)
    Zhang H, Dohopolski M, Stojadinovic S, Schmitt LG, Anand S, Kim H, Pompos A, Godley A, Jiang S, Dan T, Wardak Z, Timmerman R, Peng H Cancers 2024 Oct 16
    Safe Hypofractionation Amid Diverse Technologies: Using Teamwork to Manage the Complexity
    Lin MH, Arbab M, Pompos A, Wilcox LC, Radpour S, Desai K, Timmerman R Seminars in Radiation Oncology 2024 Oct 34 395-401
    Adrenal Insufficiency following Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy (SAbR) of Adrenal Gland Metastases
    Hamidi O, Miljanic M, Tumyan G, Christie A, Mirfakhraee S, Ali S, Dohopolski M, Gottumukkala S, Brugarolas J, Timmerman R, Hannan R Cancers 2024 Sep 16
    Integrating local and distant radiation-induced lung injury: Development and validation of a predictive model for ventilation loss
    Vicente EM, Grande Gutierrez N, Oakes JM, Cammin J, Gopal A, Kipritidis J, Modiri A, Mossahebi S, Mohindra P, Citron WK, Matuszak MM, Timmerman R, Sawant A Medical physics 2024 Sep 51 6259-6275
    Motion analysis comparing surface imaging and diaphragm tracking on kV projections for deep inspiration breath hold (DIBH)
    Chen M, Chiu T, Timmerman R, Gu X, Lu W, Parsons D, Folkert MR, Gu X Physica Medica 2024 Sep 125
    Long-Term Prospective Outcomes of Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy for Locally Advanced Lung Cancer A Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial
    Chun SG, Hu C, Komaki RU, Timmerman RD, Schild SE, Bogart JA, Dobelbower MC, Bosch W, Kavadi VS, Narayan S, Iyengar P, Robinson C, Rothman J, Raben A, Augspurger ME, MacRae RM, Paulus R, Bradley JD JAMA Oncology 2024 Aug 10 1111-1115
  • Books

    Featured 

    Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy

    Brian Kavanagh and Robert Timmerman (Ed.) (2005). Baltimore, MD, Lippincott, Williams, and Wilkins

    Image Guided and Adaptive Radiation Therapy

    Robert Timmerman and Lei Xing (Ed.) (2009). Baltimore, MD, Lippincott, Williams, and Wilkins

    Treating Tumors that Move with Respiration

    Urschel HC, Luketich JD, Papiez L, Timmerman R (Ed.) (2007). New York, NY, Springer Science & Business Media

    IMRT, IGRT, SBRT - Advances in the Treatment Planning and Delivery of Radiotherapy

    Meyer J, Kavanagh B, Timmerman R (editors) (Ed.) (2007). Basal, Switzerland, Karger

  • Honors & Awards
    • Alpha Omega Alpha
      1989 (0)
    • The Best Doctors in America
      1998-2005 (0)
  • Professional Associations/Affiliations
    • American College of Radiology
    • American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology
    • Radiation Therapy Oncology Group
    • Society for Neuro-Oncology
    • The Children′s Cancer Group and The Children′s Oncology Group