Preface – Preceptorship Singapore

Kenji Tamura, MD, PhD National Cancer Center Hospital, Department of Breast and Medical Oncology, Tokyo, Japan Co-Chair of the JSMO Young Oncologist Preceptorship

Kenji Tamura, MD, PhD National Cancer Center Hospital, Department of Breast and Medical Oncology, Tokyo, Japan Co-Chair of the JSMO Young Oncologist Preceptorship

Hirotoshi Akita, MD, PhD Hokkaido University, Department of Medical Oncology, Sapporo, Japan Co-Chair of the JSMO Young Oncologist Preceptorship

Hirotoshi Akita, MD, PhD Hokkaido University, Department of Medical Oncology, Sapporo, Japan Co-Chair of the JSMO Young Oncologist Preceptorship

Dear Colleagues

From 8th to 10th December, 2017, 15 young oncologists from Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Korea and Vietnam convened in Singapore to participate in the Japanese Society of Medical Oncology (JSMO) Young Oncologist Preceptorship that was held under the guidance of a panel of renowned experts in the field of lung cancer. This Preceptorship, organized with the active support of the JSMO office, pursued a number of goals such as promoting the participants’ research and refining their presentation skills. They learned to create a concept sheet for clinical trials and discussed evidence-based standard care decisions for non–small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients.
For these purposes, the participants were divided into 4 groups of 3 to 4 students. Overall, 4 sessions in addition to lectures were dedicated to presentations, including the Journal Club, the Pros and Cons discussion, and the presentation of the concept sheet. Each student was required to give at least one talk. Winners of the Pros and Cons discussion were determined based on the judgement of the panel. The agenda also contained a tour to the National Cancer Center Singapore that included visits to the histology and next-generation sequencing laboratories. This memo inOncology special issue contains reports on the lectures given by 5 speakers that cover important aspects of the academic researcher’s work, such as biostatistics, combination therapies, and principles of giving a talk in front of an audience.
Finally, an important goal of the conference was building relationships with other future opinion leaders in Asia. The participants were encouraged to socialize with each other, particularly across country borders, because internationality is a key to success in the modern scientific world. As was emphasized by the experts, the importance of relationships cannot be overestimated. Therefore, contact details were exchanged among the participants with the intention to stay in touch and to collaborate in future Asian clinical trials. Ideally, young oncologists receive mentors who promote their development, and later on they become mentors themselves, thus inducing a virtuous cycle. With this Preceptorship, we hope to have contributed a little to enhancing patient care and scientific progress in the field of lung cancer care in Eastern Asia.

Content based on an young oncology preceptorship conducted by JSMO on 8th–10th December 2017 in Singapore, with an unrestricted grant from Boehringer Ingelheim

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