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The need for multidisciplinarity in specialist training to optimize future patient care

Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology volume 14, pages 508–517 (2017)Cite this article

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Abstract

Harmonious interactions between radiation, medical, interventional and surgical oncologists, as well as other members of multidisciplinary teams, are essential for the optimization of patient care in oncology. This multidisciplinary approach is particularly important in the current landscape, in which standard-of-care approaches to cancer treatment are evolving towards highly targeted treatments, precise image guidance and personalized cancer therapy. Herein, we highlight the importance of multidisciplinarity and interdisciplinarity at all levels of clinical oncology training. Potential deficits in the current career development pathways and suggested strategies to broaden clinical training and research are presented, with specific emphasis on the merits of trainee involvement in functional multidisciplinary teams. Finally, the importance of training in multidisciplinary research is discussed, with the expectation that this awareness will yield the most fertile ground for future discoveries. Our key message is for cancer professionals to fulfil their duty in ensuring that trainees appreciate the importance of multidisciplinary research and practice.

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Figure 1: The four pillars of oncology.
Figure 2: Examples of functional teams that can benefit from strong interdisciplinary collaboration.
Figure 3: Academic career pathways for oncology.

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Acknowledgements

A.C.T. receives support from the NIHR RMH/ICR Biomedical Research Centre. V.K. and B.J.W. are supported by the NIH Center for Interventional Oncology, The National Cancer Institute, and the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health. R.A.S. is supported by Cancer Research UK, the CRUK-EPSRC UCL Cancer Imaging Centre and the NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors in their personal capacity and do not necessarily represent those of any institution, the National Institutes of Health, nor any government entity.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Alison C. Tree is at the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust and the Institute of Cancer Research, Downs Road, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5PT, UK.,

    Alison C. Tree

  2. Victoria Harding is at the Division of Cancer, ICTEM Hammersmith Campus, Du Cane Road, London W12 0NN, UK.,

    Victoria Harding

  3. Aneel Banghu and Dion Morton are at the Academic Department of Surgery, Room 29, 4th Floor, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TH, UK.,

    Aneel Bhangu & Dion Morton

  4. Venkatesh Krishnasamy and Bradford J. Wood are at the Center for Interventional Oncology, National Cancer Institute and NIH Clinical Center, National Institutes of Health, 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, Maryland 20814, USA.,

    Venkatesh Krishnasamy & Bradford J. Wood

  5. UK; and at the Division of Cancer, Justin Stebbing is at Imperial College/Imperial Healthcare NHS Trust, Charing Cross Hospital, 1st Floor, E Wing, Fulham Palace Road, London, W6 8RF, ICTEM Hammersmith Campus, Du Cane Road London W12 0NN, UK.,

    Justin Stebbing

  6. and at the Division of Cancer, ICTEM Hammersmith Campus, Du Cane Road London W12 0NN, UK.,

    Justin Stebbing

  7. Ricky A. Sharma is at the NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre, UCL Cancer Institute, University College London, London WC1E 6DD, UK.,

    Ricky A. Sharma

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Contributions

A.C.T. and R.A.S. conceived the idea for this article and coordinated all activities. All authors researched the data for the article and generated ideas for the content. A.C.T., V.H., A.B. and V.K. contributed equally to writing the article and the creation of display items, and all authors reviewed and/or edited the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ricky A. Sharma.

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Competing interests

A.C.T. receives research funding from Accuray, Elekta and MSD, and has received travel support or honoraria from Astellas, Bayer and Janssen. R.A.S. has received research funding from Sirtex Technology and consultation fees from Affidea, Astra Zeneca, BTG, Cancer Research Technology, Eisai, Sirtex Medical, Varian and Vertex. The other authors declare no competing interests.

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Tree, A., Harding, V., Bhangu, A. et al. The need for multidisciplinarity in specialist training to optimize future patient care. Nat Rev Clin Oncol 14, 508–517 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrclinonc.2016.185

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