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Rad Onc Job Market


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2 hours ago, futureMD2020 said:

Hey I've heard RO job market is quite temperamental, just wondering what RO can do besides oncology? Like MO is an internist so can do fellowship in palliative etc. if nothing in oncology is specifically working out

Thanks!

I will have to ask some my rad onc friends (almost went into rad onc rather than radiology ha) - I am pretty sure there isn't a ton else other than directly performing radiation oncology. Some of them do have some ward work related to post procedures but I haven't heard of them separating running a ward etc. I could be wrong and will try to check. 

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I've talked to a few rad oncs, though all were academic so keep that in mind.

 

As you'd expect oncology is what 95% of them do. I'm not sure if you'd consider brachytherapy as "something else", but it's a fellowship you can also get and get into a OR that way. In the communities there is some "non-oncology" work as well but it has to do from what I understand with removing cysts and providing palliative radiation for some cases of severe joint pain from a lesion or something that's spread to your bones. Job market used to be terrible but now days is looking good, but things can and probably will change as it's a cycle. And who knows what's going to happen as we get more into things like immuno and genetic therapies. 

 Hopefully that helps. 

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Job market is very cyclical. Canadian market is looking up (that is to say better than it once was, still not many jobs but things are quickly changing). US is looking more and more to be a bear market and not great.

Other non- rad onc things - industry (hard unless you have a PhD/already established/not recommended), general MD things - surgical assist, etc, and palliative care/hospice care fellowship should be open but these are usually 2 years extra to pay less than RO so no one I know has done any of these things. They just fellowship/locum until jobs become available, or ditch out early in residency to IM or FP. 
 

future is looking good in Canada but imo there will always be geographic restrictions. Talk to a lot of the residents and jr staff

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You don't have many alternatives other than to practice radiation oncology. Med Onc goes through IM training, you do not.

What you read online reflects the American job market more than the Canadian. There can be geographic restrictions. As others have mentioned the job situation is cyclic; it isn't something you can predict or time.

If you absolutely have to work in 1 area, then your main option is additional fellowships/advanced degrees if it happens that you graduate at a bad time.

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