About the Program
The Department of Pathology at Baylor College of Medicine and its affiliated hospitals offer a one-year Cytopathology Fellowship. Three positions are offered each year. Cytopathology fellowship is fully accredited by Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). The program is designed to provide comprehensive training in diagnostic cytology, including fine needle aspiration biopsy with surgical pathology and clinical correlation
Fellows rotate through Ben Taub Hospital and the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Training will be provided in both gynecologic and non-gynecologic materials, including performance and interpretation of fine-needle aspiration biopsies. Incorporation of ancillary studies, such as flow cytometry, will be an integral component of the Cytopathology Fellows training. Research opportunities are available in cytopathology, immunocytochemistry, flow cytometry, and image analysis. Fellows are also responsible for the Cytopathology unknown and multidisciplinary tumor board conferences. The program offers extensive experience in the performance and interpretation of FNAs, in addition to a broad training experience.
Candidates must be board-certified or eligible for certification in anatomic pathology or AP/CP and must be eligible for a license to practice in Texas.
Curriculum
This fellowship takes place from July 1 – June 30. During the month of July, fellows perform FNA's and interpret adequacy checks of needle biopsies under the direct supervision of the cytopathology faculty. Once they have successfully completed 20 FNA's biopsies, they can begin to function independently. The cytopathology faculty also gives a series of introductory didactic lectures covering a variety of topics to educate the incoming fellows and pathology residents.
Trainees cover the FNA service at our clinic, as well as providing adequacy checks for deep FNA biopsies performed by other services, such as radiology, GI, and pulmonary. Trainees review gynecological and non-gynecological cases prior to sign-out with the attending faculty member, including the incorporation of immunohistochemistry, special stains, and flow cytometry data if needed.
The fellows also take a proficiency exam three times a year to monitor their training and fund of knowledge. The results of these tests are discussed with the fellows during their evaluation (midpoint and end of training).
Fellows rotate 6-7 months at Ben Taub Hospital, 3-4 months at the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center and 1-2 months at St. Luke’s.
The fellows are not on call on weekends and there are no after-hours calls during the weekdays.
Fellows attend the annual state pathology meeting. The pathology department will also pay for their attendance national pathology meetings if they projects are accepted for presentation.
Fellows work with cytopathology faculty on various clinically-oriented projects for presentation at state/national meetings and subsequent publication.
Admissions
Candidates must be board certified in anatomic pathology or AP/CP. Applications are accepted around the year.
All application materials, including recommendation letters, must be submitted online and include the following:
- Completed online House Staff Application
- Current Curriculum Vitae
- Personal Statement
- Transcript from Medical School(s)
- Dean's Letter
- Three Recommendation Letters
For questions, contact:
Yvetter Boney
yboney@bcm.edu
Applications are reviewed from July and interviews are offered from August.
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