On Being a (cancer) Doctor

(1 Credit Hour) · Undergraduate

This course - led by a practicing hematologist/oncologist - will introduce students to cancer as a biological entity, a human experience and a therapeutic challenge. After reviewing the tools available to clinicians for the management of cancer, students will be asked to work through the clinical reasoning process surrounding the diagnosis, staging and treatment of solid tumors and hematologic disorders commonly encountered in the practice of medicine. Over a dozen actual clinical scenarios will be engaged systematically to help students appreciate the doctors' role in patient care, the patient's experience of life-threatening illness and the professional challenges of real-life clinical practice. Special circumstances including the care the pregnant cancer patient, and of the dying cancer patient will also be discussed. Three invited guest experts will offer their perspectives on the status of cancer care in the US; the strengths and limitations of the US healthcare system in addressing end-of-life care; and the importance of professionalism in medicine, respectively.