Clinical Oncology
Nature of the work
Clinical oncology embraces the non-surgical
management of malignant disease.
Clinical oncologists are involved in the
management of all types of cancer. They work in tumour site
specific multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) that focus on the treatment
of cancer affecting particular parts of the body or systems and
manage patients with cancer throughout their disease.
Working in clinical oncology
Clinical oncologists help to formulate a
patient’s treatment plan and are responsible for treating patients
with both radiotherapy and systemic therapy (chemotherapy, hormone
therapy and biological agents). These treatments may be used
with the aim of cure (radical or curative treatment), with other
treatments to improve the chances of cure (adjuvant treatment) or
to control symptoms of to improve duration of survival without the
expectation of cure (palliative treatment). The tumour type, the
site of the tumour, the stage of the disease and the patient’s
general health are the main factors that determine which treatments
are appropriate. The clinical oncologist must be able to assess the
relative merits of different cancer treatments for an individual
patient and to explain these to the patient in a way that gives
him/her the information required to make an informed decision about
treatment options.
Clinical oncologists undergo training in the
management of all types of cancer but increasingly concentrate on
treating 2 or 3 types of cancer as a consultant. They work closely
with surgeons, physicians, medical oncologists, haematologists,
palliative care teams, cancer nurse specialists, radiologists and
pathologists in the relevant MDT. They also work with radiologists,
medical physicists and therapy radiographers to deliver
radiotherapy, and with pharmacists and chemotherapy nurse
specialists to deliver chemotherapy.
Clinical oncologists need to understand the
scientific principles that underpin the treatment that they
prescribe, including the pathology and biology of cancers,
radiation physics, the pharmacology of systemic cancer therapies
and statistics. As cancer treatment continues to advance
rapidly, clinical oncologists are commonly involved in clinical
research assessing cancer treatments. Some clinical oncologists
pursue an academic career increasing understanding of how cancers
behave or leading in clinical research.
In clinical oncology, core values shared by
the discipline include:
- Actively improving our treatments through the enhancement of
the science relating to the causes and treatment of cancer
- Engaging with clinical trials and developing technologies for
the benefit of patients
- The importance of empathy and compassion to patients and
colleagues in the practice of oncology
- The importance of good communication skills and understanding
cancer in context
- Acting collaboratively to develop and enhance cancer services
for the benefit of patients
Qualifications and training
The clinical oncology curriculum defines the
process of training for the benefit of the trainee, the trainers
and those responsible for the organisation and quality assessment
of training. Throughout the period of training (usually 5 years),
it is expected that trainees will recall and build upon the
competencies previously to acquire the competencies needed for the
award of a certificate of completion of training (CCT) in clinical
oncology. Training is divided into:
· Core
Clinical Oncology Training
·
Intermediate Clinical Oncology Training
·
Advanced Clinical Oncology Training
Full details of clinical oncology curriculum
are available on the Royal College of
Radiologists web site.
Trainees complete either core medical training
or the acute care common stem in acute medicine (ACCS) and enter
clinical oncology training from ST3 to ST7 level in order to
achieve a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT).
Trainees take the examination for Membership of the Royal College
of Physicians by the end of ST3.
The full
curriculm is available on the GMC website.
* This information is correct at the time
of writing. Full and accurate details of training pathways
are available from medical royal colleges, local education and
training boards (LETBs) or the GMC.
Further information
Just click the button below for more information