Is there harm in doing a radiation oncology fellowship?

Short answer: yes. Detailed explanation below.

Your excellent question brings up the fact that there are currently more and more non ACGME accredited fellowships emerging (More than 20 the last time I checked!!! Some programs even have multiple fellowships, and there is even a 2 year fellowship which requires the applicant to bring funding!). It is interesting that this phenomenon is occurring at a time when incoming residents are among the smartest in their med school classes, sit for and pass ...

There are some areas where additional experience can be helpful and valuable such as pediatrics, brachytherapy, palliative care, etc. Even if one feels they have been adequately trained in all of these areas, there are times when the job you are looking for is just not avaialble. I think one is better off doing a reasonable quality fellowship to gain some additional experience and bide time, rather than take on a full time position that they don't feel excited or comfortable with. The fellowship...

Thank you for your responses, doctors.

@Dr. First Last, @Dr. First Last - All US radiation oncology fellowships are unaccredited - how can quality be determined if there are no standards? A private practice in Chicago has a proton fellowship. How can a resident know that they won't be essentially an internal locums for a private practice? Now, as mentioned, a program is inviting fellows for 1 or 2 years, in whatever discipline they desire, and requires them to bring funding - sounds quite unstru...

I would encourage all ROs to participate in the upcoming ASTRO 2017 Physician Workforce Survey. One of the goals of the survey is to determine the supply/demand balance for ROs. This trend of increasing number of fellows may be another indication of oversupply of ROs being trained.

The answer depends on the goals of the radiation oncology trainee in question.

For those interested in a research, a fellowship can be a springboard to a very successful career. Certainly the bread and butter of radiation oncology can be learned within residency, but often a fellowship allows the trainee to acquire a research skill set that is not otherwise available. Some fellows complete graduate degrees in advanced statistics and epidemiology (including decision analysis and Markov modelling)...

I think it is important that one has a set goal before considering a fellowship. I agree with @Dr. First Last that if one is embarking on an academic career, doing a fellowship in a very reputable place can be very helpful boosting one's research skill sets and network. It can also broaden one's horizons and can allow time for research projects. For those who are wanting to specialize in some particular clinical skill sets such as SRS/ SBRT, proton therapy, pediatrics and brachytherapy, a fellow...

For the private practice perspective, I agree with the upfront suspicion of seeing a fellowship on an application but that can be a big positive for a private practice as well.

We don't all get to pick which residency program we are matched with. Often times, for many of us, you go where you match and make the best of it. Some programs, despite the label of academics, don't offer excellent teaching, research opportunities, or cutting edge treatment modalities

A conscientious resident who feels...

I agree with Drs. Lo and Palma. The goal of a fellowship ideally should be to acquire specialized skills in a complex site such as Peds or H&N, or the required research exposure and mentorship to launch an academic career. Such fellowships from reputable institutions would be viewed extremely positively for a job in an academic setting where specialization is essential. Obviously, if a fellowship is done just to bridge time it could actually be counter productive and viewed negatively as voiced ...

I direct a fellowship at Mayo and have a couple additional thoughts to add:

There are really 2 different groups of people doing fellowship and you should think about them differently from a hiring perspective. Canada is the number 1 source for fellowships to our program and those rad oncs are excellent. They are choosing to do a fellowship because there are no jobs in Canada and it's the expectation of the hiring centers that residents will have done 1+ fellowships prior to being seriously consi...

We have older doctors practicing radiation oncology who don't have formal training in IMRT, SRS, HDR, etc. In light of that, if I had a modern graduate from an accredited program with exposure to all of these modalities who still didn't feel comfortable practicing after 4 years of residency, I would be very suspect and unlikely to offer that person an interview.