2688 - Outcomes of Radiation Oncology Residents Participating in the American Board of Radiology Holman Pathway Program

08:00am - 09:00am PT

Hall F

Screen: 27

POSTER

Presenter(s)

Joanna Yang, MD, MPH - Washington University in St Louis, St Louis, MO

J. C. Yang; Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Department of Radiation Oncology, St. Louis, MO

Purpose/Objective(s):

In 2002, the American Board of Radiology (ABR) instituted the Holman Pathway (HP) to increase the number of physician scientists within the field of radiation oncology. Though the ABR maintains and publishes a roster of HP trainees who have graduated from residency, there are no data on the number of HP trainees who have successfully transitioned to independent physician scientists.

Materials/Methods:

Using a list of HP trainees in radiation oncology published by the ABR, web searches and direct contact with individuals/departments were used to collect and verify degrees, training institution, year of graduation, current positions, practice type. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) RePORTER was queried for past and current grants. An HP trainee who had successfully transitioned to an independent physician scientist was defined by a current position within an academic medical center and receipt of an R00, R01/R37, R03, R21, DP2, DP5, or P01 as the principal investigator. All analyses were based on current employment.

Results:

From 2002 to present, 200 HP trainees graduated; 172 (86%) were MD/PhDs and 157 (79%) were male. The majority are currently in academics, inclusive of fellowships and instructorships (n=151, 76%), while 45 (23%) are in community practice and 4 (2%) are in industry. From 2017 onwards, there were consistently more than 10 HP trainees per year.

Seventy-three HP trainees (37%) had received any NIH funding ever and 56 (28%) successfully transitioned to independent physician scientists. Thirty-one (16%) HP trainees received K grants a median of 2 years (range: 0-5) after completion of residency. While 2 K grantees never received subsequent independent grants, the majority (n=18, 90%) did a median of 3 years (range: 1-10) after receiving their initial mentored grants. For HP trainees who did not receive K grants, median time from residency graduation to receipt of first independent NIH funding was 5 years (range: 0-12) with R01/R37 as the most common type of grant (n=17, 23%) followed by DP5 (n=8, 11%),

Among female HP trainees, 8 are independent physician scientists and 3 remain on K grants. Median time from completion of residency to receiving a K grant for female HP trainees was 3 years (range: 0-5) and to receiving an independent NIH grant was 4 years (range: 0-6). Though there were fewer female HP trainees, women were not significantly less likely to transition to independent physician scientists as compared to men (19% vs. 31%, p=0.13).

Conclusion:

Despite significantly increased numbers of HP trainees per cohort over the past decade, the total number of independent physician scientists emerging from the HP remains small. Women are consistently underrepresented though no less likely to transition to independent physician scientists. These data are a component of a 3-part mixed methods study. Subsequent components include both a survey and semi-structured interviews to explore how to best support aspiring physician scientists in the field of radiation oncology.