Ocular Oncology

Supervisors

• Dr. Hatem Krema, Fellowship Director
• Dr. Filiberto Altomare

Contact Information

Dr. Hatem Krema
Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
610 University Avenue, 18-739
Toronto, Ontario M5G 2M9
Tel: 416-946-2000 ext. 5572
Fax: 416-946-2189
Email: hatem.krema@uhn.ca

Locations

• University of Toronto
• UHN - Princess Margaret Hospital, Eye Tumour Clinic 

The Fellow is expected to be on premises from Monday to Friday between 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. regardless of clinical activities. It is expected that time not occupied by patient responsibilities will be used to further academic pursuits such as research and teaching. All absences during the week must be cleared well in advance.

Fellowship Objectives

1. To learn the principles of clinical diagnosis of intraocular and extraocular tumours.
2. To acquire the technical skills and interpretation of findings of the ancillary diagnostic tests.
3. To learn the various surgical approaches to ocular tumours including brachytherapy and tumour biopsy.
4. To learn the diagnosis and management of ocular involvement in systemic cancers.
5. To participate in the program research and academic activities including conferences presentations, clinical and pathology rounds, journal club meetings, and scientific article writing.

General Description

The Ocular Oncology Service at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre/University Health Network is a national program. The program receives ocular tumour patients from across Canada, and it is the sole ocular oncology referral centre in the province of Ontario. The ocular oncology team works in close affiliation with radiation oncologists, medical oncologists, pediatric ophthalmologists, pathologists, and geneticists. The ocular oncology service is supported by a host of specialty-trained personnel including, specialized nurses, ophthalmic photographers, ocular prosthetics specialists, radiation physicists, and ophthalmic technicians.

As a member of the University Health Network, the program is linked to the ophthalmology program at Toronto Western Hospital. The program has affiliation with the Hospital of Sick Children and St. Michael's Hospital. Ocular cancer is managed in a multidisciplinary setting with full clinical and translational research capacity.

The program manages a variety of ocular and periocular tumour patients, as well as patients of systemic cancers with secondary eye involvement. The program provides all the current treatment modalities in ocular oncology including, surgical intervention, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and targeted therapies, whenever indicated. The Fellow in Ocular Oncology is instrumental in the management of these patients. This Fellowship position provides a unique setting for mastering the diagnosis and management of ocular and periocular tumours and related diseases, with an excellent opportunity for clinical research. The Fellow is offered an exceptional learning opportunity through working with a multidisciplinary team of oncology specialists, with exposure to a high volume of ocular and systemic cancer patients.

Clinical Duties

The Fellow is expected to perform full clinical examination, diagnostic imaging interpretation, and surgical hands-on training in the management of the ocular oncology patients, as well as management of in-house consults and clinical trial patients. 

Research

The Fellow is expected to complete a minimum of one clinical study and one case report per year.

Teaching

The Fellow participates in transferring the knowledge and skills acquired during his fellowship to the visiting junior colleagues and medical students.

Vacation

2 weeks’ per year. To be negotiated on individual basis.

Conference

Sponsored attendance to conferences (maximum 2 each year) is granted to a Fellow who has a presentation/ poster as a first author.

Evaluation

An evaluation after 2 months of the fellowship will be held to determine performance. A periodic evaluation is held with the fellow to evaluate his or her performance and to give feedback regarding activities. Fellows are encouraged to provide feedback and express their comments on how their fellowship is progressing, including areas they would like to work on.

Duration

2 academic years (starting July 1st). Shorter duration may be negotiated.

Salary

$55,000 CAD/year

Application Process

Fellowship applications are available through the above contact.

To apply, please submit your updated CV with a letter of intent at any time between August 15th and November 15th 

Attendance to an interview is a MUST for any candidate applying from within Canada. Shortlisted overseas candidate will be interviewed over the Internet.  Interviews will take place within the first 2 weeks of December.

The decision of acceptance is made by early January.