Quantitatively and qualitatively augmenting medical student knowledge of oncology and radiation oncology: an update on the impact of the oncology education initiative.

Purpose The Oncology Education Initiative was established in 2007 in an effort to advance oncology and radiation oncology education at the undergraduate level. As a continuation of the initiative, the aim of this study was to determine whether these structured didactics would continue to increase overall medical student knowledge about oncologic topics. Methods Preclerkship and postclerkship tests examining concepts in general oncology, radiation oncology, breast cancer, and prostate cancer were administered. The 21-question, multiple-choice examination was administered at the beginning and end of the radiology clerkship, during which a 1.5-hour didactic session was given by an attending radiation oncologist. Changes in individual question responses, student responses, and overall categorical responses were analyzed. All hypothesis tests were two tailed with a significance level of .05. Results In the 2009-2010 academic year, 155 third-year and fourth-year students had average examination score improvements from 62% to 68.9% ( P P Conclusions In the successive years since its inception, the Oncology Education Initiative continues to show a significant improvement in medical students' knowledge of cancer. The initiative has also succeeded in providing radiation oncology education to all graduating medical students at the authors' institution. Dedicated oncology education in the undergraduate medical curriculum provides students with a better understanding of multidisciplinary oncology management.