About the SCIT Program


The Stanford Cancer Imaging Training (SCIT) Program, funded by the National Cancer Institute, aims to train the next generation of researchers in the development and clinical application of advanced techniques for cancer imaging. Our coursework, rich mentored training opportunities, and outstanding resources, provide an active, vibrant program that attracts students nationwide. Graduates from our program are highly sought after, filling faculty and industry research positions internationally. This two-year Training Program accepts only US citizens or permanent residents and will help develop a US workforce to make progress in the battle against cancer.

Led by Program Directors Jeremy Dahl, PhD, and Bruce Daniel, MD, the objectives of the SCIT program are to:

  • Recruit and to train the next generation of cancer-imaging scientists, equipping them with critical technical and clinical skills for research in the use of imaging for the detection, characterization, and treatment of cancer
  • Provide trainees with up to 6 months supervised experience in the clinical aspects of cancer imaging
  • Provide trainees with a minimum of 18 months of closely-mentored experience with a radiologist/imaging scientist mentor pair ("paired mentorship") in a focused cancer-imaging research project
  • Provide coursework and educational opportunities, including attendance at multidisciplinary tumor boards
  • Provide mentorship in the publication of scholarly research and in grant preparation
  • Promote the trainees’ career development by providing opportunities and guidance for obtaining independent scientific research positions

The SCIT program is surrounded by and draws from numerous departments, programs, and resources with core relevant competencies to imaging science, as illustrated by the figure below.

Trainees will have access to our exceptional imaging facilities, including the Richard M. Lucas Center for Imaging in the Department of Radiology, as well as additional research space in more than 10 other buildings throughout the School of Medicine. The SCIT Program also facilitates unique research collaborations with the Bio-X Program, the Center for Biomedical Imaging at Stanford (CBIS), the Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford (MIPS), the Radiological Sciences Laboratory (RSL), and the Integrative Biomedical Imaging Informatics at Stanford (IBIIS).