The duties performed by Radiation Oncologists include taking care of cancer patients at the time of radiation. Their work involves developing a strategy and prescribing treatment procedures for a cancer patient. They specialize in identifying and treating the side effects caused by radiation therapies on human beings.

If you want to pursue radiation oncologist and take it up as a career, you will receive extensive training on the proper use of radiation to treat cancer with utmost precision as minute negligence while working in this field can prove to be fatal for the patient.

Radiation therapy or ‘Radiotherapy’ is an important subject in medical technology (B.Sc.).  The syllabus is based on the subjects of Radiation Physics, Radiobiology, Radiation Oncology, Chemotherapy, and other additional topics. If you pursue this subject, you will need to stay abreast with the new innovations in the department of chemotherapy, upcoming computer software, and other new radiological concepts.

Some of the top colleges that offer Radiotherapy courses are AIIMS, New Delhi; Christian Medical College, Vellore; Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore; Madras Medical College, Chennai and Government Medical College, Nagpur.

MD Radiotherapy Course

It is a postgraduate course with duration of 3 years. You need to have an MBBS degree or a BDS, D.H.M.S., B.H.M.S., B.A.M.S., B.A.S.M., B.E.M.S., B.I.A.M.S., B.N.Y.T., B.A.T.S., B.U.M.S., B.P.T., B.Pharma., N.O., or M.D(A.M.) degree to pursue this post graduation course. The selection process for this course is totally based on the cut-off obtained in National Eligibility Entrance Test – PG (NEET-PG).

Colleges like AIIMS, PGI, and JIPMER conduct their own separate entrance examination.

While if you are a medical practitioner who is working in the medical industry for a period of 10 years, you can directly apply for this course. There is no need to sit for an entrance examination.

In this 3-year long medical course, you will learn the radiotherapy treatment mostly for cancer and other serious health disorders like thyroid disorders, blood disorders. You will gain skills to operate high-energy X-rays.

Career Prospect of Radiation Oncologist

After completing a course in Radiotherapy, you will be eligible to work as Radiation Oncologist, Radiation Therapist, Radiology Technicians, Ultrasound Technician, and CT Scan Technologist. The industries that hire Radiation Oncologists are healthcare, hospitals, integrative healthcare clinics, public health clinics, college health centers, natural apothecaries. You can also work as physician practices. The salary that you are eligible to receive ranges between INR 2 Lakhs and INR 10 Lakhs.

The work of a radiation oncologist is full of responsibilities like treatment planning, delivery, on-treatment review, patient support services, supplementary and independent prescribing, palliative care, quality management, teaching and learning, training and clinical research, while the radiographer is one specialist role where the work involves tumor detection and technical specialty coordinate. So, you might be called to work any time. It’s hectic but once you realize that because of your work there are lives getting saved, you see your patients walking again after recovering, all your tiredness will disappear. You will feel more energetic and your enthusiasm for more work will start happening.