When you choose a medical equipment provider, you’re not just choosing the product, you’re choosing the people. Customers routinely tell us that it’s the people of Xstrahl that truly make the difference. They tell us that the level of application and technical support provided by our team is critical to helping them achieve research success. That’s why SARRP is the technology of choice for preclinical radiation research and the system used most widely in published studies about image-guided radiation.
One person on the Xstrahl team working really hard to help support the development and use of SARRP for radiation biology research is Wilfried Goetz. Wilfried joined Xstrahl approximately four years ago.
Before joining Xstrahl, Wilfried was a SARRP user for two years and with his collective experience both in and outside the company, he is considered to be one of the world’s leading SARRP experts. Wilfried previously conducted ground-based space radiation studies at the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory; and thus, trained NASA students in Space Radiation Research using cell culturing and irradiation techniques. At the Brookhaven National Laboratory, Wilfried determined the effects of radio-protectors against cosmic radiation and used molecular biology and biochemistry approaches to contribute to studies on eukaryotic DNA repair mechanisms. Aside from studying the impact of many radioprotectors, radiomitigators or sensitizers, Wilfried has an intensive experience with ionizing equipment such as room and cabinet x-rays, electron guns, and linear accelerators.
He obtained a Master of Science degree and a Master Business Administration from France where he was born and raised. He arrived in the United States in 2003 and obtained his US citizenship in 2017.
What’s your professional background?
My background is in research, business, and management. I spent 12 years as a Research Lead Specialist at the University of Maryland Baltimore, School of Medicine, in the Department of Radiation Oncology. I’ve dedicated most of my professional life contributing to research studies on the origin of the adaptive immune system and studying the influence of radiation on human cells using a unique microbeam electron gun.
What do you for Xstrahl?
At Xstrahl, I’m a Technical Support Manager, RSO (Radiation Safety Officer) & Applications Specialist. All employees at Xstrahl wear multiple hats!
Why did you leave your old company to join Xstrahl?
For several years, I worked with the SARRP platform in my research lab. I was impressed by the technology and its ability to enable various types of preclinical research we had not be able to perform with other research equipment. When our lab lost funding, I was motivated to work for a business involved in cancer research by providing research institutions with novel technology. Of course, Xstrahl was top of mind. I find my work here both exciting and rewarding.
What is the most positive experience you’ve had here and why?
Honestly, I’m thrilled when our customers contact us with positive feedback about the equipment and information on new published studies. It’s an incredibly positive experience and makes us all proud of what we do.
What continues to excite you most about our mission?
The idea that we actively contribute to the global effort to eradicate cancer is very motivating. We help our customers perform true translational research, which has so many practical applications. Our recent work with several leading proton therapy research labs, for example, has generated important preclinical data that is simply not available with other research systems. This inspires me every day.
