Dr Josef Kovarik

Biography

Dr Josef Kovarik is an acting consultant clinical oncologist and a Lead of ENT Oncology at the Northern Centre for Cancer Care in Newcastle upon Tyne, in the position of Head of ENT Oncology.

The treatment of head and neck and skin malignancies has always been the main field of interest of Josef Kovarik, he has significant experience in IMRT and image guidance. At the University Hospital Kralovske Vinohrady in Prague, he started an IMRT programme in the year 2003. In Newcastle, tomotherapy has been used for the treatment of head and neck since 2010 and SABR for the treatment of lung tumours since 2014. However, Dr Josef Kovarik first introduced IMRT in the treatment of head and neck cancer in Limerick at the beginning of 2009, where it is now a standard treatment for head and neck tumours.

The thesis of Dr Kovarik's PhD was a treatment of skin cancer. During his career so far, he's widened his experience by working in several centres in the UK; in 1991 he joined Dr Svoboda in Portsmouth where he was introducing his hyper fractionated regimes. He's also become very familiar with the techniques used in Austria and in the Netherlands, through sabbaticals arranged in those countries by ESTRO.

Qualifications

• Medical Specialist Examination in Clinical Oncology - Institute for Postgraduate Education in Medicine, Prague, Czech Republic
• Medical Specialist Examination in Medical Oncology - Institute for Postgraduate Education in Medicine, Prague, CZ
• Associate Professor in Oncology - Awarded by the Rector of the Charles University, Prague, CZ
• PhD (The Position of Radiotherapy in the Treatment of Non-melanoma Skin tumours focused on the Use of HDR Moulds) - Palacky University, Olomouc, CZ

Research interests

Toxicity of head and neck radiotherapy and radiochemotherapy.