The role of an oncologist is one which society has a great need for and it is one area of medicine which sees more patients than any other. Oncologists like James A Cannon specialise in cancers of the body as well as tumours and this is particularly important given that 1 on 3 people will be affected in some way from cancer. Oncologists earn a very strong wage and have a median salary of around $200,000 per annum, the role is also highly rewarding and deeply varied.

If you have a particular interest in medicine and you would like to pursue a career in this field, here are just some of the skills which you are going to need.

Hard Working

Unlike with some areas of medicine, oncology requires you to be constantly on the go and you will need to work extremely hard both throughout your education and throughout your career itself. In order to succeed at becoming and being an oncologist, you must be constantly studying as there are so many new forms of cancer and new treatments that are becoming available. The nature of cancer is widely varied and you must have a great work ethic in order to be able to best serve your patients.

Bedside Manner

Oncologists deal with a lot of patients and a lot of families of patients throughout their day and these are very often people who are scared and worried. In order to best treat the patient and help their families, you will need to ensure that you have a calming and tranquil bedside manner which fully informs patients and their loved ones about the situation that they are facing. Whilst you will need to strip the emotion out of what you are doing so that you can best deliver your job, you must ensure that you employ empathy when it comes to the patients and their families.

Collaborative Working

Oncology is a field of medicine which will see you working with specialists across all different branches of medicine. As you treat various cancers, you will be required to work with specialists on the various parts of the body which have been impacted by the cancer or indeed the root cause of the cancer. In order to do this you will need to be humble, professional and most importantly be able to have an understanding of the pressures that other colleagues are facing.

Wide Knowledge

On top of the knowledge that you will need regarding cancers and tumours, you will also be required to have a wide knowledge of many different areas of the body. Because cancer can affect any part of the body, you will need to be able to have a full and complete understanding of that particular area and how the cancer can and will affect it. For this you will need to have a wide knowledge and the passion to always be learning.