1 year fellowship before applying to Hem-Onc

[Drahmajuve]

Hello, I am PGY-2 in community hospital trying to boost my chances to match into Hem-onc fellowship.
So due to lack of research, connections and my VISA status, my chances are limited so I was trying to find if there is a chance of doing 1 year fellowship BEFORE applying to the match. I know people have done that in other specialties ( applying to advanced heart failure fellowship prior to cardiology or hepatology fellowship prior to GI). I was wondering if there is something similar in Hem-Onc field? Unfortunately, most of the 1 year fellowships list having completed hem-one fellowship as a requirement.

Another option I was thinking is doing a research fellowship for 1 year before applying to match for next cycle.
I was wondering if anyone has had experience with that.

Thanks in advance

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[gutonc]

Options include:
Phase 1
Hospice/Palliative Medicine
BMT (some will take before Hem/Onc)
Research

None are as well established "pathways" as the heart failure --> cards or hepatology --> GI, but people have done them.

Another option is oncology hospitalist and use your off time to get some research in. That way you don't completely waste a year or two and you get paid pretty well to do it.

If it were up to me, I'd either do the hospitalist or HPM since if they don't lead to hem/onc fellowship, they are careers in their own right.

 

[randomhemoncpd]

MD Anderson has leukemia / lymphoma fellowships that are designed for this purpose too (primarily for potential heme/onc applicants looking to make their application more competitive). You get some clinical experience and opportunity to publish and get some papers from some well-known hematologists there.

 

[HemeOncHopeful19]

MD Anderson has leukemia / lymphoma fellowships that are designed for this purpose too (primarily for potential heme/onc applicants looking to make their application more competitive). You get some clinical experience and opportunity to publish and get some papers from some well-known hematologists there.

I would doubt you get too much time to get some papers done especially by the time you have to apply (like 2 months into the fellowship), BUT I will say I personally know 1-2 people that did this path and matched Heme/Onc at a pretty decent program (ok well it's my program so I should say I am biased). I would say the big downside is that if you don't match Heme/Onc it seems like it would be a total waste of a year.

 

[randomhemoncpd]

Good point. I know of people who did a second year which can really allow for a lot of publications, but that is really a larger gamble. For non-competitive applicants, it may ultimately not move the needle that much.

 

[gutonc]

Good point. I know of people who did a second year which can really allow for a lot of publications, but that is really a larger gamble. For non-competitive applicants, it may ultimately not move the needle that much.

The key here is that for an applicant who isn't competitive in the first place, a 1 year fellowship (which is actually 2 months before you need to submit apps again) isn't going to change anything. Someone who's on the bubble, or maybe just had a poor application strategy the first time around, or who decided late and only got their app together in the end of 3rd year, will do well with HPM or one of the other 1 year fellowships, mostly to show commitment.

 

[MD46]

In our fellowship, palliative care fellows came to our clinics on rotations and built repertoire with the attendings. Either they got a great letter or almost always an interview at out heme onc program. Once every other year they would match at our home program. Also some of them worked hospitalist shifts and admitted at times for heme onc as overflow when we got capped on inpatient admits at night.