New ASCO president highlights importance of ‘professional outlet’ for a satisfying career
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Key takeaways:
- Women in oncology should engage with ASCO and other professional societies.
- Young women entering the field of oncology should reach out to potential sponsors for career opportunities.
Lynn M. Schuchter, MD, FASCO, said she will work to remove barriers to high-quality cancer care and promote opportunities for volunteerism during her upcoming term as ASCO president.
Schuchter — past chief of the division of hematology/oncology at the Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania and director of the Tara Miller Melanoma Center at the University of Pennsylvania — served on the ASCO board of directors between 2009 and 2012 and as chair of the Annual Meeting Scientific Program, Cancer Research and Cancer Communications committees. She will begin her 1-year term as ASCO president next month after serving as president-elect for 1 year.
“I have been so fortunate to be involved with ASCO from the very beginning of my career, and I certainly would recommend that oncologists engage with ASCO and other professional societies,” Schuchter told Healio. “We are also truly fortunate in oncology to have so many women in the field, many of whom are leaders. I am proud of ASCO and its members.”
Schuchter spoke with Healio about how her background has helped prepare her for the presidency and advice she would give other women in the profession who are considering taking on this role.
Healio: What excites you most about the opportunity you have as ASCO president?
Schuchter: As an ASCO president, we are given the opportunity to help shape the direction of some of the organization’s work. The mission and vision of ASCO is 100% aligned with my own values and priorities in the areas of education, research, professional development and advocacy — and helps me as a practicing oncologist and researcher every day.
Taking on this leadership role allows me to help steer this amazing organization, and with the selection of a presidential theme, it allows me to emphasize certain parts of what ASCO is doing that is aligned with my own priorities.
Healio: What is your presidential theme and top priorities in this role?
Schuchter: My presidential theme is “The Art and Science of Oncology: From Comfort to Cure.” With this theme, I want to capture both the unprecedented progress we have made in cancer treatment, which is leading to better outcomes and often cures for some patients, and also the recognition that these advances are not benefitting all patients, either because the therapy is not effective or cancer becomes resistant to the therapy.
As oncologists, we face this dynamic every day. An important part of what we do daily is having difficult conversations with patients about goals of care, sharing timely information about prognosis, and understanding each patient’s values and wishes.
As president, I will work to emphasize both the amazing science that we can apply to more and more patients, as well as how hard and important it is to have these difficult and essential conversations. With this theme, I want to support oncologists in doing this hard work and emphasize its importance. I view this as essential to high-quality care for our patients and is a key element of the art of cancer care.
Healio: What challenges do you hope to overcome?
Schuchter: We face many challenges in oncology. First, we still have a gap in science, and consequently, we do not have optimal therapy for all patients or the ability to detect cancer earlier. There are also many challenges in the delivery of cancer care and large disparities in access to care. Confronting the issue of health care disparities is critical to improving patient outcomes. This continues the presidential theme of Lori J. Pierce, MD, FASTRO, FASCO, which focused on equity in cancer care for all, and it is important for ASCO and for me to continue this important work.
We also see major roadblocks to providing high quality cancer care, including insurance issues, administrative burden and lack of resources, as well as complexities in the payment system. There’s a lot that ASCO can do and I plan to work closely with policy and advocacy teams to understand what is driving these issues, recommend solutions and then work to promote those solutions with Congress, the NCI and other federal agencies to streamline the process and remove roadblocks and barriers.
Another challenge that was emphasized during the presidential year of Eric P. Winer, MD, is physician and provider burnout and the stressors facing the oncology workforce. We are all facing increasing clinical demands and have less time to care for patients. There are increased administrative and regulatory burdens with the EHR system, which are all contributing to people leaving the workforce and not being satisfied with their career.
A healthy workforce is directly tied to ensuring the very best and highest quality care for our patients — they are truly related, and there is a lot more work that we can do in this area.
Healio: How did your background help prepare you for this new role?
Schuchter: Coming into the role as president, I have a thorough understanding of how ASCO works and what it can achieve, which is key to leading a professional society. Understanding its role, mission and what our members need, I come prepared given my own deep experience with ASCO.
In addition, I recently stepped down as the division chief of hematology/oncology at University of Pennsylvania, having served in the role for 15 years. As I stepped into the ASCO president-elect role and soon to be ASCO president, I can see that the administrative skills I gained as a division chief in terms of understanding finances and budget, clinical operations, mentorship and sponsorship, and HR policies have truly informed my work at ASCO. Other leadership skills, including clinical operations, research, and understanding of NCI Comprehensive Cancer Centers, have prepared me well as I jump into my new role as ASCO president.
Healio: What advice would you give women in the field who may consider taking on a role like this?
Schuchter: Getting involved and volunteering with ASCO is important, and there are so many different opportunities. The first step is understanding what one is most passionate about and trying to connect your own interests with the work of ASCO.
I have emphasized the role of sponsorship for early and mid-career women in oncology and suggest women identify the people who are in leadership positions at ASCO, on the ASCO board of directors or chairing ASCO committees and reach out to them to make a connection. It’s an important way to find potential sponsors for various opportunities within ASCO. This past year, I traveled with ASCO to oncology meetings in Brazil and Japan, and I met amazing young women oncologists. I was so impressed by their work and I have been able to invite them to serve on committees within ASCO.
For all women in oncology —whether in private practice, community practice, academics or industry — having a professional outlet with national organizations and professional societies is such an important part of having a satisfying career. This dimension of our professional career is vital for career satisfaction and necessary for a sustainable career. There is great enjoyment in doing volunteer work and meeting colleagues from all over the world with different perspectives, from different backgrounds and from different disciplines that enriches the experience of being an oncologist. It is so important for fellows, young clinicians, investigators and faculty who are just beginning their careers to truly understand the importance of this part of their professional career. It has given me so much joy, is so much fun and has truly informed and continues to shape how I care for my patients every day.
For more information:
Lynn M. Schuchter, MD, FASCO, can be reached at lynn.schuchter@pennmedicine.upenn.edu; Twitter: @lynn_schuchter.
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