1. Introduction

common guidelines with a global perspective for the clinical training required for

physicians to qualify as medical oncologist. The overall goal of the curriculum is to

ensure that patients, wherever they live, have an equal chance of receiving treatment from

well-trained physicians.

for the training in medical oncology (1, 2) was published by both societies in 2004, the

Global Core Curriculum (GGC) Task Force has received feedback from all over the

world, representing a variety of perspectives and experiences; various, mainly due to the

variable status of cancer care around the globe, the diversity of health systems in

different countries, and the varying degree to which Medical Oncology is established as a

medical specialty in these countries. The curriculum is used in different settings in a

number of countries, and it has been published in 11 different languages (Bulgarian,

Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Latvian, Portuguese, Russian, and

Spanish) (3, 4). In addition, the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) has

endorsed the curriculum.

from esteemed colleagues around the world and shaped to a significant degree by the

rapid advances in the management of patients with malignant diseases in the short time

since the first edition was produced. Treatment options now comprise increased use of

multidisciplinary treatment and more specific treatment approaches for the individual

patient as a result of research in molecular biology (e.g., targeted therapy). The GCC

Task Force therefore felt it was timely to update the curriculum content.

national educational and health bodies according to the resources and conditions of their

country. The diversity of health and educational systems around the world may render

some Curriculum recommendations aspirational at this stage, even for those systems with

well-developed training programs in Medical Oncology. Reflecting this aspirational

nature of the recommendations, the Task Force has renamed the updated curriculum from

Global Core Curriculum to Global Curriculum.

estimated that more than 12 million new cases are diagnosed every year and the

corresponding estimates for total cancer deaths is 7.6 million per year (about 20,000

cancer deaths a day) (5). The last decades have seen a rapid growth in medical

technology and advances in our fundamental knowledge of cancer cell biology, with

impacts on genetics, screening, early diagnosis, staging, and overall treatment of cancer.

These developments have also led to a more coordinated, multidisciplinary approach to

the management of the individual malignancy and have only increased the need to

establish formal training based on a set of guidelines or a curriculum in the various major

specialities such as surgery, radiotherapy, and medical oncology.