Education & Training

Training

The Medical Oncology & Hematology Program at Sunnybrook is a major teaching site for the University of Toronto. We provide academic opportunities at all levels from first-year medical students through to post-graduate trainees and fellows. Our participation in the Program of Evidence-Based Care at Cancer Care Ontario (CCO-PEBC) helps set our program apart as a leader in oncology and hematology education.

Several of our members are leading experts in their fields and have been recognized with teaching awards. The leading oncology educaiton website oncologyeducation.ca was developed by our members and has achieved national and international impact.

Leadership for these initiatives is provided by medical oncologists (Drs. Scott Berry and Sunil Verma) and a hematologist (Dr. Gena Piliotis) at the Odette Cancer Centre. As well, several members participate on various committees for the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RSCPS) as members (Drs. Wells, McLeod) or chairs (Drs. Berry, Piliotis); as well, Dr. Kevin Imrie is the RCPSC president elect.

Medical Student Education

Our program is consistently ranked as one of the most highly rated rotations in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto.

Medical students seek electives that expose them to the practice of oncology through participation in ambulatory medical, radiation, gynaecologic and surgical oncology clinics across a variety of tumour sites. Medical students are exposed to pathology, medical imaging, screening, symptom-control and palliative care. These electives are both multidisciplinary as well as multi-professional. Formal clinics are supplemented by tumour boards and seminars geared specifically to medical students, with reference material for independent study. Medical students participate in consultations on hospital inpatients and have access to ward patients but do not have primary ward responsibilities.

The Hematology elective is an opportunity for medical students to familiarize themselves with basic clinical hematology problems as seen in an ambulatory setting and as consults in a tertiary hospital. Contents include anemia, white cell disorders, platelet disorders, coagulation and thrombosis, and low grade lympho-proliferative disorders.

Learn more about our electives:

• Medical oncology
  • Link to MedSIS
• Hematology
  • Link to MedSIS

Residency Program

The U of T residency program is one of the largest in the country, and is consistently ranked as one of the the top rotations in the Department of Medicine. Residents are a key part of the care team and learn while seeing patients in our multi-disciplinary outpatient clinics and in formal, small group teaching sessions with our award-winning faculty. Internal medicine residents experience an outpatient rotation at OCC, and are encouraged to participate in research projects while at OCC.

For more information about the U of T postgraduate residency program for medical oncology, please contact the program director, Dr. Scott Berry, 416-480-4270

Fellowship Programs

Medical Oncology Fellowship

We offer a unique fellowship program for trainees who are board certified in medical oncology, specifically tailored to the trainee's educational needs. This program may be 1-2 years in duration depending on clinical and academic interest. The fellows are also encouraged to enter into a graduate program such as a Masters in Clinical Epidemiology or Masters in Education during their fellowship.

We also offer a multi-disciplinary fellowship program for trainees interested in breast and gastrointestinal oncology. This program features unique training with clinical exposure in medical, radiation, and surgical oncology. There are additional opportunities for training in pathology, imaging, and basic science research. This has been a successful program, attracting national and international trainees.

Interested candidates are encouraged to contact Dr. Yoo-Joung Ko.

Our post graduate training as well as programs developed for medical oncology and hematology residents nation-wide, and the development & implementation of training guidelines, particularly through the participation in the Program of Evidence-Based Care at Cancer Care Ontario (CCO-PEBC), continue to set Sunnybrook and the University of Toronto apart as leaders in oncology and hematology education.

Hematology Fellowship at the Odette Cancer Centre

The Odette Cancer Centre (OCC) is a tertiary care institution affiliated with University of Toronto and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. The OCC is the second largest comprehensive cancer centre in Canada with 10,000 new patients seen annually.

This fellowship program provides trainees the opportunity to refine clinical expertise in the management of lymphoid malignancies and/or adult myelodysplastic syndromes at an 'MDS Center of Excellence'.

Trainees attend 1.5 days of clinics, one clinic being a self-led supervised longitudinal clinic. They attend 8-9am rounds twice weekly and will have 3.5 days of protected time to conduct clinical and/or translational research projects pertaining to the above subspecialties.

Fellows are encouraged to pursue post-graduate training in clinical epidemiology, medical education or basic/translational sciences at the University of Toronto.

Fellowship duration: 1-2 years
Start dates: January 1 and July 1 of each year
Funding: Available at PGY6 and PGY7 levels. Peer reviewed fellowship funding applications strongly encouraged.

Contact:
Dr. Rena Buckstein, Head of the Hematology Site Group
2075 Bayview Ave. Suite T2-042
Toronto, Ontario. M4N 3M5

Phone: 416-480-5847
Fax: 416-480-6002
Email: rena.buckstein@sunnybrook.ca