ESTRO 2023 - Abstract Book

S48

Saturday 13 May

ESTRO 2023

Conclusion PBT, as a replacement for conventional photon radiotherapy, is cost-effective and justifiable as an efficient use of finite healthcare resources. Making it a standard treatment option and available to every patient in Japan is socially acceptable from the perspective of health economics.

PD-0084 Are you planning to be a radiation oncologist? A survey by the Young Group of AIRO V. Nardone 1 , L. Boldrini 2 , V. Salvestrini 3 , C. Greco 4 , G.M. Petrianni 4 , I. Desideri 5 , F. De Felice 6

1 Unit of Radiotherapy, University of Campania "L. Vanvitelli", Department of Precision Medicine, Naples, Italy; 2 Radiation Oncology, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli, IRCCS, Department of Radiation Oncology, Rome, Italy; 3 Radiation Oncology, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Careggi, University of Florence, Department of Experimental and Clinical Biomedical Sciences "M. Serio", Florence, Italy; 4 Radiation Oncology, Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome, Department of Radiation Oncology, Rome, Italy; 5 Radiation Oncology, Azienda Ospedaliero- Universitaria Careggi, University of Florence, Department of Experimental and Clinical Biomedical Sciences "M. Serio" , Florence, Italy; 6 Radiation Oncology, Policlinico Umberto I "Sapienza" University of Rome, Department of Radiotherapy, Rome, Italy Purpose or Objective Despite the pivotal role of Radiation Oncology in cancer therapy, the shortage of radiation oncologists and the low motivation amongst medical students to choose this discipline and join the residency program represents a long-standing problem in Italy. The Young Section of the Associazione Italiana di Radioterapia ed Oncologia clinica (Young section of the Italian Association of Radiotherapy and Clinical Oncology, yAIRO) circulated an online questionnaire survey among residents currently enrolled within Italian radiotherapy residency schools to investigate the profiles, motivations, knowledge of the radiotherapy discipline, and organizations and the needs of younger members. Materials and Methods The survey was developed by the yAIRO steering committee and included questions about the demographic characteristics of the residents (Profile A), the background of their clinical experience during the school of medicine and national residency admission test performance (Profile B) and the residents’ knowledge of the scientific associations active in the field of radiotherapy (Profile C). Results A total of 134 residents responded to the questionnaire, out of a total of 400 residents actually in training (response rate 33,5%). According to most of the residents, radiotherapy was not adequately studied during the medical school (n.95; 71%) and an Internship in Radiotherapy was not mandatory (n.99; 74%). Only a minority of the residents had chosen a master degree thesis in Radiotherapy (n.12; 9%). A low percentage of the residents stated that they knew the Associazione Italiana di Radioterapia ed Oncologia Clinica (Italian Association of Radiotherapy and Clinical Oncology, AIRO), its young section (yAIRO) and the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO) when they were in School of Medicine (respectively 11%, 7% and 13%). Conclusion The results of the survey require a profound reflection on the current teaching of Radiation Oncology in our country, highlighting the need for a better-defined position in the framework of the School of Medicine core curriculum. Regular surveys and comparisons over time could be helpful to evaluate the results of AIRO strategies aiming to increase the knowledge of radiotherapy and to create a networking platform for young professionals. With this aim in mind, the results of the survey must be interpreted as a benchmark for future comparisons. PD-0085 Implementation of online workshops on IGABT in LACC: experience of BrachyAcademy E. Dizendorf 1 , A. Sturdza 2 , L. Tagliaferri 3 , L. Russo 4 , N. Nesvacil 2 , C. Kirisits 2 1 Elekta, Brachytherapy, Veenendaal, The Netherlands; 2 Medical University of Vienna, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Radiation Oncology, Vienna, Austria; 3 Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Radiation Oncology, Rome, Italy; 4 Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Diagnostic Radiology, Rome, Italy Purpose or Objective To support brachytherapy users during the COVID-19 pandemic and improve their confidence in image-guided adaptive brachytherapy (IGABT) in locally advanced cervical cancer (LACC), online workshops were developed and implemented by BrachyAcademy (non-profit peer-to-peer educational initiative in Elekta). Materials and Methods In 2021-2022 two online workshops were organized. Each workshop was conducted over 6 hours in 2 consecutive days. Participating teams (min. 1 radiation oncologist/clinical oncologist (RO/CO) and 1 medical physicist (MP) from each hospital) had to send a complete clinical case of LACC including brachytherapy DICOM treatment files and questions to the faculty. During the workshop, feedback was given to each clinical case by 5 faculty members (2 RO, 1 Radiologist, 2 MP).