Welcome from the residency program director
Welcome to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center Radiation Oncology Residency Program website! I am thrilled that you are considering our program. I hope that you will find this website helpful in highlighting what our program has to offer and in answering all your questions.
The mission of our program is to train physicians to be skillful in the practice of radiation oncology, to be caring and compassionate in the treatment of patients, and to provide opportunities for residents to develop as academicians and leaders. Our residency program provides an outstanding educational environment dedicated to empowering physicians so that they can become leading clinicians and scientists in either an academic or community setting. We use a multi-faceted approach that consists of:
- Training in the management of cancer and benign disease;
- Didactic course work in radiation biology and medical physics;
- Mentoring in professional development;
- The opportunity to perform research in the laboratories of a number of outstanding Vanderbilt scientists who utilize cutting edge techniques coupled with highly collaborative approaches;
- Multi-disciplinary Tumor Boards and Seminar Series designed to foster interactions between basic scientists and clinicians who perform translational research;
- Grant writing workshops;
- Attendance at scientific/medical conferences.
You will find that we have a very tight-knit group with a bond that continues after graduation. Many of our alumni continue to be involved with our program through professional mentorship of current residents or participation in our annual mock oral board exam.
We greatly appreciate your interest in our program.
Best Regards,
Natalie A. Lockney, MD
Program Director
Welcome from the chief residents
Thank you for considering Vanderbilt for your Radiation Oncology residency! We think you will find Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) an outstanding place to continue your medical training. We pride ourselves on our collegial culture, excellent clinical training, research opportunities, and support for each of our unique career (and life) goals. We enjoy having every training opportunity, including pediatrics and LDR and HDR brachytherapy, all in the same department. We are on the same campus as VUMC and Vanderbilt University, making it easy to collaborate on research projects. We have structured clinical, cancer and radiation biology, and physics didactics, which we feel is one of the best in the country.
Our residents (and attendings and medical students) become part of the VUMC family forever. We love seeing alumni annually at our mock oral exams and at our dinner at ASTRO! We frequently have meals with co-residents, as well as faculty and other colleagues in the department on weekdays and weekends. We've been known to go to movies, happy hours, trivia nights, lounge by each others' pools, bbq at each others' homes, carve pumpkins, etc.
Good luck! Hope to meet you soon,
Kaleb Darrow, MD, Kyra McComas, MD, Ha Pham, MD, PhD
Chief Residents
Department Tour and Resident Experience Videos
We hope these short videos will help you learn about Vanderbilt Radiation Oncology and what makes it our professional home.
Virtual Tour
Resident Experience
Return to the main Residency Program page