Hematology & Medical Oncology Fellowship Curriculum

Inpatient experiences are consultative and conducted on the Gundersen Health System La Crosse Campus. All patients are admitted to the internal medicine or hospitalist service. In conjunction with hematology or medical oncology staff, you will be responsible for making daily rounds, performing clinical evaluations, ordering chemotherapy and managing treatment complications. During this rotation, you will also take referral phone calls from providers within and outside the institution for all issues regarding hematology and medical oncology.

You will be assigned to rotate through general and subspecialty clinics at the Center for Cancer & Blood Disorders at Gundersen Health System. With staff supervision, you will independently evaluate and treat new and returning patients. Rotations include general hematology and oncology clinics, as well as multidisciplinary specialty clinics such as breast, gastrointestinal, gynecologic, head and neck, and lung.

This required 1-month rotation takes place at the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center in Madison, Wis. The Stem Cell Transplant program started in 1981 and performs approximately 110 transplants annually, including allogeneic (related and unrelated), autologous and cord blood transplants, and CAR-T infusions. You will stay at an apartment near the hospital, free of charge.

You will spend a week with our 2 dedicated hematopathologists during the first "bootcamp" month of fellowship, learning the basics of reviewing and interpreting peripheral smears and marrows. Later in the first year, you will expand on this "bootcamp" experience by gaining expertise in the preparation and interpretation of bone marrow aspirates and biopsies and flow cytometry. You will also become familiar with operations of the clinical laboratory and pathology processing (histology, etc.) and gain insight into lymphoma diagnoses by being introduced to lymph node biopsy interpretation. At the end of the month, competency is assessed.

In this rotation, you will spend time in different clinical laboratories to learn about the principles, mechanics and interpretation of common tests used in hematology and oncology. The different areas include blood bank, coagulation, general hematology and immunology. You will provide consultative expertise to providers needing blood-banking assistance, which offers an opportunity to learn about principles and mechanics of plasma and cellular aphaeresis.

This one-month rotation is divided between inpatient and outpatient experiences. During the rotation, you will learn how to manage pain and other common symptoms afflicting patients with cancer, including those in the early stages of the disease and at the end of life. You will also lead patient and family conferences and have faculty-observed patient interactions to allow you to work on end-of-life discussions, delivery of difficult news and other communication techniques.

You will have the opportunity—but are not required—to travel to outreach locations to learn more about how cancer and blood disorders are managed in rural and potentially low-resource areas. This is a great experience if you’re interested in a career in rural hematology/oncology.