RadOnc elective worthwhile for future Pathologist?

[getunconcsious]

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Hey guys and gals!
Hope yall don't mind a quick question from someone not actually going into RadOnc. I'm an MS3 who will be applying to match in Pathology next year. Right now we are making our elective schedules for next year. I have always thought Onc in all of its forms is cool but I'm especially intrigued by radiation oncology. I even briefly considered going into it but emotional burden of real live CA pts+radiographs+uber-competetive=no thanks. However I would still really like to experience it, since Pathologists spend a LOT of time diagnosing neoplastic and malignant diseases. MS3 allows for familiarity with medical and surgical onc but rad onc really isn't something that you ever see.

So my question is, is this a worthwhile endeavor? The reason I ask is that I go to UT-Houston so it would be taken at MD Anderson, which apparently isn't used to having people not going into RadOnc take this elective. Don't worry, I would only take it in Spring so as not to be in the way of people using it as an audition (I have to take my own audition Path rotations anyways). But MDACC requires this hugely burdensome application process to even take the elective, involving personal statement, CV, transcripts, USMLE scores, and god knows what else. So I don't want to bother with all that unless it would really be a good experience.

I personally would like to be familiar with the treatment of the diseases I will be diagnosing. I'm not one of those people who is going into path because I didn't like patients or patient care--I just have an insane, nerdy passion for those slides 😛

Any opinions on this would be much appreciated, and thanks for reading my long post! 😀 Oh and big congrats to those who matched in your specialty, I know it's very difficult and lots of to current MS3's applying next year!

 

[clintpark]

Hey guys and gals!
Hope yall don't mind a quick question from someone not actually going into RadOnc. I'm an MS3 who will be applying to match in Pathology next year. Right now we are making our elective schedules for next year. I have always thought Onc in all of its forms is cool but I'm especially intrigued by radiation oncology. I even briefly considered going into it but emotional burden of real live CA pts+radiographs+uber-competetive=no thanks. However I would still really like to experience it, since Pathologists spend a LOT of time diagnosing neoplastic and malignant diseases. MS3 allows for familiarity with medical and surgical onc but rad onc really isn't something that you ever see.

So my question is, is this a worthwhile endeavor? The reason I ask is that I go to UT-Houston so it would be taken at MD Anderson, which apparently isn't used to having people not going into RadOnc take this elective. Don't worry, I would only take it in Spring so as not to be in the way of people using it as an audition (I have to take my own audition Path rotations anyways). But MDACC requires this hugely burdensome application process to even take the elective, involving personal statement, CV, transcripts, USMLE scores, and god knows what else. So I don't want to bother with all that unless it would really be a good experience.

I personally would like to be familiar with the treatment of the diseases I will be diagnosing. I'm not one of those people who is going into path because I didn't like patients or patient care--I just have an insane, nerdy passion for those slides 😛

Any opinions on this would be much appreciated, and thanks for reading my long post! 😀 Oh and big congrats to those who matched in your specialty, I know it's very difficult and lots of to current MS3's applying next year!

I find it difficult to imagine that what you'll experience during a rad onc rotation (seeing patients, doing H+Ps, helping with contouring, etc.) will be helpful in your career as a pathologist. (However, future rad oncs may benefit from a path rotation...)

For whatever it's worth, a rad onc elective can be one of the easiest rotations for those not going into the field (at least at our institution, it is...), especially if you are taking it not during the 'audition' months.

Good luck.

 

[stephew]

If youre interested in something like the path of radionecosis etc its an interesting idea.

 

[IndyXRT]

It might be interesting to see how we design radiation treatments so that you have an idea why pts treated with radiation have strange patterns of fibrosis at autopsy/in biopsy specimins. And we are always talking about the pathology of the tumors we are treating. I think there would be plenty to interest you for a month.

 

[clintpark]

I find it difficult to imagine that what you'll experience during a rad onc rotation (seeing patients, doing H+Ps, helping with contouring, etc.) will be helpful in your career as a pathologist. (However, future rad oncs may benefit from a path rotation...)

For whatever it's worth, a rad onc elective can be one of the easiest rotations for those not going into the field (at least at our institution, it is...), especially if you are taking it not during the 'audition' months.

Good luck.

Okay, I'm thinking over my initial reply and what others have added... I change my mind.

While what we do to treat patients may not be of interest to you, seeing how we use the information you provide to make all kinds of decision will likely make you a more conscientious, and ultimately more helpful, pathologist.

A couple of examples: When analyzing lymph nodes from a neck dissection, your input on extracapsular extension determines whether the patient gets chemotherapy together with post-operative radiation. For many cancers such as breast, colorectal, gastric, endometrial, etc. your diligence in getting as many nodes out of the fat pad makes a huge difference in not only the staging but how they get treated.

Good luck.

 

[getunconcsious]

Hey all thanks much for the input. I really would like to take the elective; I just am not sure what to write for a 'personal statement'. I mean I can see why they want this from students taking it as an audition elective but I think it's a bit of an unreasonable requirement for people taking it in spring semester who are going into something else. Though it's perhaps unsurprising as MDACC is by far UT's most unwelcoming "teaching hospital" when it comes to students.

Anyways maybe I will find out if there is an away RadOnc rotation at Baylor that is more welcoming of people not going into the specialty.

As an aside, are other RadOnc electives similarly weird about their demands on students planning to do the rotation late in the year and go into another field?

 

[getunconcsious]

Okay, I'm thinking over my initial reply and what others have added... I change my mind.

While what we do to treat patients may not be of interest to you, seeing how we use the information you provide to make all kinds of decision will likely make you a more conscientious, and ultimately more helpful, pathologist.

A couple of examples: When analyzing lymph nodes from a neck dissection, your input on extracapsular extension determines whether the patient gets chemotherapy together with post-operative radiation. For many cancers such as breast, colorectal, gastric, endometrial, etc. your diligence in getting as many nodes out of the fat pad makes a huge difference in not only the staging but how they get treated.

Good luck.

Thanks! This is what I'm talking about! Hanging up the stethoscope, so to speak is NOT easy (even for someone like me that absolutely loves path) so I feel like it would be really great to see how what we do really affects people. I'm pretty much gonna be behind the scenes for the rest of my career so I don't think it's unreasonable to want to see what exactly people will do with the info I give them.

 

[stephew]

I think Clints take is a very good thoughtful one and I think i know what you mean getunconscious. What you do really does effect people. That will make you an excellent pathologist.

And by the by there is a nice pathology of radiation book out there http://www.amazon.com/Radiation-Pat...=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1206549451&sr=8-4

 

[stephew]

Hey all thanks much for the input. I really would like to take the elective; I just am not sure what to write for a 'personal statement'. I mean I can see why they want this from students taking it as an audition elective but I think it's a bit of an unreasonable requirement for people taking it in spring semester who are going into something else. Though it's perhaps unsurprising as MDACC is by far UT's most unwelcoming "teaching hospital" when it comes to students.

Anyways maybe I will find out if there is an away RadOnc rotation at Baylor that is more welcoming of people not going into the specialty.

As an aside, are other RadOnc electives similarly weird about their demands on students planning to do the rotation late in the year and go into another field?

never heard of that but I dont know how they can screen applicants who will promise not to go into radonc so gets off the essay scot free. Heck you might switch fields. And even if not, its probably just not fair to make some people write it and others not.

Anyway just write what you've told us.

 

[getunconcsious]

never heard of that but I dont know how they can screen applicants who will promise not to go into radonc so gets off the essay scot free. Heck you might switch fields. And even if not, its probably just not fair to make some people write it and others not.

Anyway just write what you've told us.

LOL I suppose that makes sense. Heck, if I've convinced you all that I have good reason to take it and yall are radiation oncologists then hopefully the same argument will work at MD Anderson! Thanks again everyone for the great responses I'm actually much more excited about taking the clerkship now than I was before!

 

[stephew]

I think most radoncs are very excited about their field and are really pleased when someone else takes an interest. Particuarly since many (most) dont really understand it, we enjoy showing it off to someone who isn't coming in with a snarky attitude about it (ie "dont you just push buttons"). I imagine pathologists probably feel something of the same when folks mutter under their breath that they arent real docs since they dont see patients, or all have personality disorders or some other such nonsense. People are tribal and docs included. We enjoy someone else taking a geniune interest. So welcome!