Educational and Fellowship Activities Within Medical Oncology

Hematology/Oncology Fellowships

Led by Ann LaCasce, MD, MMSc, the Department of Medical Oncology coordinates the Dana-Farber/Mass General Brigham Fellowship in Hematology/Oncology, which involves training at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), and Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH). The Dana-Farber/Mass General Brigham Fellowship in Hematology/Oncology has two tracks: a Hematology-Oncology Track and a Classical Hematology Track.

This program is geared towards academically-oriented physicians who will become leaders in clinical and laboratory investigation, clinical care, and education. To achieve this goal:

• First-year fellows are immersed in intensive clinical training.
• Beyond the first year, fellows engage in two or more years of in-depth clinical, translational, and/or basic research.
• Trainees attend a wide variety of teaching conferences and weekly disease-oriented teaching sessions.

Read more about Fellowships in Hematology/Oncology at Dana-Farber.

T32 Postdoctoral Training Programs

Training in Oncology Population Sciences (TOPS) Fellowships

DF/HCC's TOPS Postdoctoral Fellowship Program is co-led by Jennifer Mack, MD, MPH, and Nancy Keating, MD, MPH. Postdoctoral fellows pursue a two-year program of mentored research, coursework, and professional skills training that supports innovation and leverages the expertise of DF/HCC faculty to prepare them for independent investigation in cancer-focused population science.

The program has three specific strategies to achieve this overarching objective:

• Trainees learn core methods and skills necessary for investigation through coursework and participation in regular seminars, workshops, and reading. 
• Trainees focus on a significant research project, with close supervision from one or more mentors.
• trainees gain professional skills that are prerequisite for investigation, including project development, grant writing, presentation, building and working with diverse teams, running a dry laboratory, and the Responsible Conduct of Research.

Read more about DF/HCC's TOPS T32 Postdoctoral Training Program.

Graduate Training in Cancer Research

The Training Program in Cancer Biology is co-led by James DeCaprio, MD, and Jennifer R. Brown, MD, PhD. The Program prepares the next generation of Medical Oncology physician-scientists to pursue careers in laboratory and clinical translational sciences and is committed to enhancing diversity in cancer research.

To achieve this goal:

• First-year fellows are exposed to the Institute's faculty through several teaching programs and begin to read related literature.
• Beyond the first year, fellows enter research-oriented laboratory and clinical investigation opportunities provided by senior and experienced early career faculty.
• The curriculum is designed to be flexible and custom-tailored to suit the needs of each fellow based on their previous training, area of emphasis, and career goals. Although fellows may choose to pursue credits towards a degree, no specific program of coursework is stipulated or required.
• The program includes completion of a significant mentored research project (the major focus of trainees' time/effort), an individual developmental plan, a postdoctoral advisory committee that meets at least yearly, a grant-writing seminar series, and regulatory training in the Responsible Conduct of Research.

Advanced Fellowships

Several divisions have established advanced fellowships: Breast Oncology, led by Erica Mayer, MD, MPH; Hematologic Malignancies/Stem Cell Transplant, led by Corey Cutler, MD, MPH; and Early Drug Development, led by Glenn Hanna, MD. The goal of these programs is to provide specialized and comprehensive research and clinical training to individuals who have completed oncology training at other institutions, many of whom are international. Graduates of advanced fellowships often return to their home countries and institutions and remain important collaborators.

Educational Opportunities

Members of the Department of Medical Oncology conduct tutorials and teach courses at Harvard Medical School (HMS). The department offers a fourth-year clerkship in hematology/oncology, for which Robert Mayer, MD, serves as course director. Registration for this program is through the HMS Registrar's Office, Exchange Clerkship Program; the rotation is available from September through June. Please direct Exchange Clerkship inquiries to exclerks@hms.harvard.edu. Harold Burstein, MD, PhD, co-directs the Advanced Integrated Science, Cancer Biology Course for third- and fourth-year students. The Pouissant Prematriculation Summer Program is a four-week program hosted by the Department for underrepresented minority students who are about to enter HMS, and offers coursework, seminars, and shadowing in the clinics at Dana-Farber.

Serving as attending physicians on the oncology service of BWH, members of the department instruct medical residents. The department provides attending physicians for 11 teams each month. Experience in ambulatory oncology is also available to interested medical residents.

Continuing Medical Education (CME)

The department coordinates an annual four-day continuing medical education (CME) course, "Cancer Medicine and Hematology," under the auspices of DF/MGBCC, and directed by Robert Mayer, MD. In addition, many of the disease centers within the department present annual or semi-annual half-day programs for regional physicians and other health professionals. Many members of the department participate in weekly tumor boards at community hospitals throughout eastern New England, as well as in CME courses across the country.

Read more about Dana-Farber's Education and Training programs.