PROJECT SUMMARY
The goal of the Medical Students Summer in Oncology at Anderson Research (Med Students SOAR)
program is to provide 25 talented first-year medical students per year with an individualized, hands-on research
experience in oncology under the mentorship of our expert faculty, while exposing participants to multidisciplinary
cancer care through clinical observations and interprofessional simulation trainings. An increase in knowledge
of all areas of oncology will be included in the curricula, as well as career development and networking
opportunities. The program objective is to promote careers in cancer research, which is in line with the NCI’s
mission to enhance the training of a workforce to meet the nation’s biomedical, behavioral, and clinical research
needs. This objective will be accomplished through a formalized 8- to 10-week program at The University of
Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. MD Anderson, an NCI-designated cancer center that is widely
recognized for its outstanding clinical care and number one ranking in awarded NCI grants, is ideally positioned
to provide this research experience. Our highly regarded clinical care combined with an emphasis on research
makes it an environment unparalleled for mentored research and educational programs. The Program Directors
(Marites Melancon, PhD; Vickie Shannon, MD; and Jillian Gunther, MD, PhD) are faculty members with
successful research programs and experience in leading education programs. Participating faculty members are
not only committed educators but also internationally recognized experts in various fields, spanning basic,
translational, and clinical research. Students will be matched with faculty mentors, and they will discuss and
decide on the research project prior to the summer. During the summer session, students will complete their
projects with structured mentoring and evaluation. Instruction in the Responsible Conduct of Research will be
included. Students will also learn about other areas of cancer biology and career development through program
lecture series, clinical observation, interprofessional clinical simulation, near-peer mentoring, communication
skills workshops, and seminars. The program will culminate in a Summer Experience Final Exposition, in which
students present their research project to faculty, students, and staff. Our recruitment plan seeks to attract highly
qualified applicants from all racial, ethnic, and gender groups but with increased representation from
underrepresented groups based on race, ethnicity, disability, or other social, cultural, or economic
disadvantages. Successful implementation of this program will directly address the need to cultivate interest in
oncology, and specifically cancer research, early in medical careers in order to recruit and retain future cancer
researchers.