He entered into a very special cooperation with his MGH colleagues in urology, in medical oncology, in radiation oncology and in pathology resulting in the implementation of seven successive national protocols for muscle-invading bladder cancer patients using a multi-modality approach which allowed over two thirds of those patients so-treated to escape without receiving radical bladder-removing surgery.

In prostate cancer Professor Shipley helped develop and lead 10 randomized clinical trials using radiation therapy evaluating the advantages of high dose proton beam irradiation and evaluating in the National Radiation Group, the RTOG, the benefits of combining androgen deprivation with radiation in men with localized prostatic cancer.

Professor Shipley, who holds many national and international leadership positions on committees and consensus panels in genitourinary oncology, has also chaired the American Society for Radiation Therapy and Oncology committee that has developed International educational courses with the local radiation oncology societies of emerging countries.