About the Program
Our program facilitates head and neck oncologic care at some of the largest academic institutions in the Texas Medical Center, including Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center, the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Ben Taub Hospital and Texas Children’s Hospital. Over 700 new head and neck cancer patients are evaluated by our faculty annually. The full breadth of head and neck oncology is represented, including major open ablative and reconstructive procedures, minimally invasive techniques, and local and national clinical trials.
The Head and Neck Surgical Oncology and Reconstruction Fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine is designed to train future academic head and neck surgeons by establishing confidence and efficiency in performing complex head and neck surgical and reconstructive procedures, developing leadership skills in a multidisciplinary clinical team that facilitates cross-specialty discussion and relationship management, and supporting academic and research endeavors, including national meeting participation, committee work, grant writing, and peer-reviewed journal publication.
With broad and intense training in this fellowship, the foundation will be set for a strong clinical acumen for future clinical practice. Our faculty are involved in numerous head and neck oncology leadership roles nationally in the American Head and Neck Society, NRG Oncology, Veterans Affairs, and American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery; we value the opportunity to support fellow graduates in their academic pursuits. See our past and current fellows.
Program Highlights
- Number of fellows per year: One per year
- University Affiliation: Baylor College of Medicine
- Hospital Affiliation: Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center, Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Ben Taub Hospital
- Accreditation: Advanced Training Council of the American Head and Neck Society
- Licensing Requirement: Texas Medical Board full licensure
- Call Requirements: 6 weeks per year
- Program Faculty
- Follow the Head and Neck Surgical Oncology and Reconstruction Instagram
Number of fellows per year: 1
To be considered for the Baylor College of Medicine – Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgical Oncology and Reconstruction Fellowship, the candidate must have completed an ACGME-accredited residency in Otolaryngology and must be qualified to sit for the American Board of Otolaryngology written and oral exams. The candidate must be able to secure a Texas Medical License.
Final selections for the Head and Neck Surgical Oncology and Reconstructive Fellowship are made through the American Head and Neck Society Match process.
Duties and Responsibilities
The Fellow will be appointed as an Instructor in the Bobby R. Alford Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery and is expected to be a Primary or Teaching surgeon in major head and neck surgery ablative and microvascular free tissue transfer cases.
The Fellow will:
- Manage operated patients post-operatively with the head and neck resident teams
- Be part of the faculty call pool and will have an opportunity to run an independent outpatient clinical and surgical experience, if desired.
- Produce at least one abstract for a national meeting and/or a manuscript during the year that will be mentored.
Required educational activities that will exempt the fellow from clinical duties include: - Weekly Multidisciplinary Treatment Planning Conference
- Weekly fellow head and neck oncology didactic series
- Quarterly journal club
- Annual microvascular free tissue transfer cadaveric dissection course
Research
The program faculty at Baylor College of Medicine and affiliated hospitals are in a continual analysis of oncologic and functional outcomes for patients with head and neck cancer using prospective and retrospective studies.
Currently, our faculty are involved in therapeutic and biomarker development clinical trials across our affiliated hospitals and is utilizing institutional and national data to generate treatment algorithms for patients with head and neck cancer designed to improve treatment-related metrics, including time to treatment, time interval between surgery and radiation and completion of curative intent treatment in a patient population enriched for under-represented minorities with reduced social-economic status and access to cancer care.
Affiliations with leading research and healthcare institutions in and around the Texas Medical Center, the world’s largest healthcare complex, provide access to an exceptionally diverse array of people and resources. Discover how our affiliations enhance our education programs.
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