Oncology/Hematology

[Gleevec]

Hi guys,
I was wondering what people in med school have heard about the oncology/hematology "market." I am very interested in an academic career in onc/hem that involves a fair degree of research. I want to study new diagnostic methods for cancer and treatments based on these diagnoses. Are med schools already saturated with onc/hem specialists, or would there be room for someone like me?

Thanks a bunch!

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[Surfer75]

about the market in heme/onc, but isn't Gleevac the new drug on the market for CML, a STI? I thought I heard my attending talking about it when I did 2 wks of heme consults...

 

[tonem]

Who knows what the heme/onc job market will look like in 7 years (I'm assuming thats when you'll be completing medical school and your medicine residency). You can never tell. When I started medical school, anesthesiology and radiology were not very competetive, now the tide has turned and residency positions in those specialties are harder to get. If you're sure thats what you want to do, then work hard during medical school so that you'll be in a position to go where you want no matter what the market is like. Good luck.

 

[Skip Intro]

Good advice from Tonem.

As an interesting aside, I worked in Oncology research for three years. My belief is that there will be a lot of research work to be done in the coming years with the inevitable and forthcoming discoveries and further understanding of the human genome. There is a lot of interest in less toxic, gene-targeted research in the field. A friend of mine is working for a biotech company in Maryland who specializes in immune modulation, specifically the development of monoclonal antibodies directed at various tissue substances involved in inflammation, etc.

If you don't happen to make it into medical school (perish the thought), I would highly recommend looking into pharmaceutical/biotech based clinical research. I was a Clinical Research Associate eventually becoming a Clinical Project Manager. I got to travel all over the U.S., Canada, and the world for that matter (at the company's expense) and was often the "expert", at least on the new drugs we were developing, when visiting doctors and nurses at various research institutions (like Sloan-Kettering, MD Anderson, Hopkins, Duke, etc.). It is an excellent job, especially if you like to travel.

The job market is severely underemployed right now, and you can very quickly make quite a handsome salary. When I left my job, I was making close to six figures... and that was only with an undergrad degree! (But, I wanted to get my M.D. - we all know how that goes. )

Good luck, wherever the chips may fall.

-Skip

 

[Su4n2]

Skip Intro,
i am looking for the type of job you are describing. i go to school at night for my mph and would like to make good money during the day. i live in nyc. any ideas for where to look? thanx. susan

 

[Gleevec]

Thanks for the advice. I would much rather prefer working in an academic medical center teaching, doing research, and treating patients than working in the private business sector. Hopefully I will get a shot at oncology/hematology at a university. But right now I have to worry about getting into med school =P We'll see, thanks a lot!

Originally posted by Skip Intro
Good advice from Tonem.

As an interesting aside, I worked in Oncology research for three years. My belief is that there will be a lot of research work to be done in the coming years with the inevitable and forthcoming discoveries and further understanding of the human genome. There is a lot of interest in less toxic, gene-targeted research in the field. A friend of mine is working for a biotech company in Maryland who specializes in immune modulation, specifically the development of monoclonal antibodies directed at various tissue substances involved in inflammation, etc.

If you don't happen to make it into medical school (perish the thought), I would highly recommend looking into pharmaceutical/biotech based clinical research. I was a Clinical Research Associate eventually becoming a Clinical Project Manager. I got to travel all over the U.S., Canada, and the world for that matter (at the company's expense) and was often the "expert", at least on the new drugs we were developing, when visiting doctors and nurses at various research institutions (like Sloan-Kettering, MD Anderson, Hopkins, Duke, etc.). It is an excellent job, especially if you like to travel.

The job market is severely underemployed right now, and you can very quickly make quite a handsome salary. When I left my job, I was making close to six figures... and that was only with an undergrad degree! (But, I wanted to get my M.D. - we all know how that goes. )

Good luck, wherever the chips may fall.

-Skip

 

[Winged Scapula]

Moving to the General Residency Issues Forum...