Grace Minesinger is a rising 5th year doctoral candidate in the Department of Medical Physics at the University of Wisconsin. She earned her bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Virginia in May 2022. She joined UW–Madison in August 2022, completing her master’s in medical physics in 2024 as she advanced toward her doctorate.
At UW–Madison, she currently conducts research in the Image Guided Interventions Laboratory under the mentorship of Dr. Martin Wagner. Grace’s doctoral research focuses on developing algorithms to improve the accuracy and efficiency of the treatment planning workflow for histotripsy, an emerging therapy that utilizes focused ultrasound to destroy liver tumors. Histotripsy is a highly promising treatment option for liver cancer patients, as it is non-invasive, non-ionizing, and non-thermal, hence offering increased precision and reduced complications compared to existing alternatives. Despite its clinical potential, the existing treatment planning workflow is time-consuming, limiting the number of patients that can be treated each day.
To streamline the clinical procedure, Grace has developed a patient-specific, biomechanical model to predict the abdominal deformation that occurs during therapy. This allows enhanced tumor visualization for targeting, as well as patient position optimization. Her approach utilizes finite element modeling, deep learning, image registration and segmentation, and multi-modal medical imaging (CT, cone beam CT, and ultrasound), and was presented at SPIE Medical Imaging in 2026. Her research has been supported by the NCI-funded T32 Training Grant, and she recently was awarded an F31 Predoctoral Fellowship through the NIH NCI.
Grace has a passion for science communication and sharing her work, as she presented at international conferences such as SIR, SIO, SPIE, where she was awarded a Research Scientist Award at SIR in 2023, and runner-up for best student paper award at SPIE in 2024. She also received runner-up awards at three separate flash talk competitions, including one hosted by the UW Carbone Cancer Center.
She will share her latest developments at AAPM this summer in Vancouver. While in Vancouver, she will learn from experts in the biomechanics field at the World Congress of Biomechanics, supported by three travel awards from the AAPM Expanding Horizons Grant, the UW Scholarship Hub Conference Travel Grant, and the UW Cancer Trainee Network.
Outside the lab, Grace enjoys knitting, drawing, hiking, and endurance sports. She is currently training for an open-water swim around Alcatraz in September and the Chicago Marathon this October.