Radiation Oncologist Using Physics to Treat Cancer

Radiation Oncologist: a physician who specializes in the use of radiation as the main modality in treating cancer patients. Radiation will be used to cure cancer either alone or in combination with surgery and/or chemotherapy.

As a doctor in this specialty you will work in concert with other physicians and surgeons as part of a multi-disciplinary cancer team.

Quick Facts

Competitiveness: High

Length of training: 5 years

Number of residency programs: 80

Number of residents in training: 589

Number in U.S. currently Board Certified in specialty: 3,636

Mean number of hours per week in patient care activities: 56.6

Residency Information

You will spend 1 year in an internship, followed by 4 years of training in this residency. It is possible to receive training in the subspecialty of:

Hospice and Palliative Medicine- prevent and relieve the suffering of patients with life-limiting illnesses.

Why Choose

You will not get exposure to this specialty while in medical school completing your required clinical rotations. Many physicians are attracted to this specialty because of the regular hours for the most part and new technologies.

Others enjoy the intense relationship which you develop with your patients as they undergo treatment to be appealing.

Typical Schedule

You will work in a hospital setting and have a very predictable schedule with little night call. If you are in an academic setting you will spend time conducting research and teaching, more so than if in a community hospital.

If You're Interested

While in medical school you will want to learn a lot about anatomy, surgical oncology and chemotherapy. You shouldn't be surprised to learn that having a solid knowledge base in physics is very important in this specialty.