David Olmos MD PhD

Group Leader, Prostate Cancer Research

Spanish National Cancer Research Centre(CNIO)

Head of Prostate Cancer

Centro Integral Oncológico Clara Campal

Hospital Madrid Norte

Pursuing a career in

translational/basic research

XIV Congreso Nacional de la Sociedad Española de Oncología Médica II Joint ESMO-SEOM YOC Educational Session

Medical Oncology Career pathway

Head of Department

Head of Unit/

Leader in pathology

Senior consultant

Junior consultant

Resident physician

Clinical Research Career pathway

International Studies Leader

National studies leader

Key member of clinical research group/

Research leader

Member of a research group/

Prinicipal investigator in multicentre studies at your centre

Co- investigator as Junior faculty or Resident Physcian

Questions for the audience

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN INTERESTED IN PURSUING A CAREER IN THE TRANSLATIONAL

OR BASIC CANCER RESEARCH?

Please rise your hand if yes

Questions for the audience

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN INTERESTED IN TRAINING AS LAB RESEARCHER?

Please rise your hand if yes

Questions for the audience

IS TO HAVE LAB EXPERIENCE A REQUISITE TO BE A TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCHER?

Please rise your hand if yes

Questions for the audience

HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE THE CHANCE TO WORK IN A LAB?

Please rise your hand if yes

Questions for the audience

HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE RUN EXPERIMENTS OTHER PERSON HAS DESIGNED?

Please rise your hand if yes

Questions for the audience

HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE BEEN TAUGHT HOW TO DESIGN THE LAB EXPERIMENT/S YOU DID?

Please rise your hand if yes

Questions for the audience

HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE A PhD OR ARE WORKING TOP GET A PhD DEGREE?

Please rise your hand if yes

Questions for the audience

HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE INCLUDED LAB EXPERIMENTS FOR THE PhD?

Please rise your hand if yes

Questions for the audience

HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE RUN AND DESIGNED LAB EXPERIMENTS FOR THE PhD?

Please rise your hand if yes

Questions for the audience

IF YOU HAVE ANSWER YES TO MANY…

… YOU HAVE A LOT OF INTEREST, BUT PROBABLY…

…..YOU HAVE DEVOTED A LOT OF EFFORT/FREE TIME AND PROBABLY YO ARE EXTREMELY

LUCKY TOO

Basic Scientist

Group Leader

Post-doctoral : 4-8 years

Pre-doctoral student: 4-6 years

Master student: 1-2 years

Bachelor in Sciences 4 years

Lab is not a natural enviroment for clinicians

• For a Basic career research is unavoidable

• You can do translational research without direct lab experience but...

Do I really need lab experience?

• PhD Spain (during and after residency)

– Mixed Clinical, Translational and basic

• Two Post-doc in UK

– First focus in biomakers and molecular pathology

– Second focused in molecular pathology and genomics

My personal experience

• At home/Spain: – You need to have gurantee of protected time for the lab.

– Look for the best lab in your enviroment

– Opportunities to present and publish data as key author.

• Abroad: – Look for PhD fellowships for clinicians

– Preferably a lab which is use to have clinicians (our learning curve is initially a bit slower thatn basic scientist).

A lab for a PhD

Begginings in the lab are difficult

Lab may be dissapointting

But do not stress with IMPACT FACTOR

• If you have real lab experience: – Look for the best in your field of interest – Apply to grant to support you post-doc – Define you project/s before going to the lab – More good opportunities abroad – Good recommendation letter help

• No real lab experience:

– Look for Translational fellwoship for clinicians – Best an enviroment which is keen to clinicians – Good recommendation letter help

A Post-doc

For any project is key that there is funds

For any project is key that there is funds

you are judged by your results

• Funding!!!

• Identify a translational/basic opportunity : – Preferably in a field that you have experstise and publications

and pre-doc or post-doc – Still needs to be novel and differente from the research of your

previous mentors – Stay focus during the first years

• Identify a clinical colleague with whom to work

– This can be on-site or off-site – On-site is better for grantsmanship purposes - easier to

integrate. Needs to be a two-way street

For an independet career

CNIO Prostate Cancer Team Elena Castro, group leader Mercedes Alonso, Lab Manager María Isabel Pacheco, Senior Technician Paz Nombela, student

CNIO Clinical Research Programme Manuel Hidalgo, Director & GI unit Pedro P. López, GI unit Gastrointestinal Cancer Unit Miguel A. Quintela, Breast Unit Breast Cancer Unit Fatima Al-Sharour, Bioinformatics unit Elena Pineiro, Bioinformatics unit Antonio López, Clinical Trials Unit

CIOCC Genitourinary Jesús García-Donás, Coordinator Juan Fco Rodriguez, Junior consultant Nuria Romero, Junior consultant

Acknowledgments

Colleagues and Mentors Johann de Bono, Royal Marsden, UK

Stan Kaye, Royal Marsden, UK

Paul Workman, ICR, UK

Aurelius Omlin, St. Gallen, Switzerland

Rosalind Eeles, Royal Marsden, UK

Gerhardt Attard, ICR, UK

Simon Pacey, Addenbroke´s, UK

Colin Cooper, East Anglia University, UK

Dan Brewer, East Anglia University, UK

Shahneen Sandhu, Peter McCallum, Australia

Enrique Grande, H. Ramon y Cajal

Emilio Alba, H. Clínico de Málaga