American Society of Clinical Oncology IDEA Award 2024

Reflection of a captivating experience

Receiving the American Society of Clinical Oncology International Development and Education Award (ASCO IDEA) 2024 was the culmination of an effort than began around a year back when the idea to apply occurred to me. The application process for this award commences in July each year and targets early-career oncologists from low-medium income countries (LMICs). The opportunity to attend leadership workshops, engaging up close with senior ASCO members, learning the know-how of furthering one's career in this field and then matching with an oncologist who becomes our mentor and visiting their institution seemed too lucrative to let pass by. I set to work formulating my personal statement, updating my curriculum vitae and approaching our senior faculty, Dr Raja Pramanik who was a previous recipient of this award for expert tips and his prized letter of recommendation for me. After prayers and fervent wishes, and a brief interview with Vanessa Sarchet, the Associate Director of International Affairs at ASCO I received the wonderful news of having been selected for the coveted award. 

Multiple Zoom calls, virtually meeting all the awardees from various LMICs, sorting logistics and itineraries, led to the first trip to the United States of America! After digesting the extreme excitement of stepping foot on this country came the blissful shock at the scale of the ASCO event. 40,000 attendees from all over the world, and we as the IDEA recipients had the slice of the cake with the juiciest cherry, if I were to describe our privileges in dessert terminologies. We were hosted by the Conquer Cancer Foundation itself, which covered our travel and stay along with a generous per diem. We started off the program 3 days before the actual meeting began and underwent a morning-to-evening "Train the Trainer" workshop where we learnt for the first time as clinicians nuances of leadership, mentorship and administration. We were given multiple practical exercises that pushed us out of our comfort zones, such as building an "elevator pitch" to propose a novel idea to senior leaders and practising difficult negotiations in the workplace. Conducting these workshops were IDEA award veterans and senior oncologists such as Dr Frank D. Ferris - greats who you wouldn't have run into in normal life. These were definitely supernormal days.

On the final day of the workshop, we were bestowed upon with the beautiful IDEA award plaques at the prestigious Conquer Cancer grants ceremony where we also saw other awards being distributed and I am sure each one of us made a mental note to apply for one of these the next time.

This was also the first time I physically met my mentor Dr Sandra D'Angelo who is a major name in the field of sarcomas and cellular therapy in sarcoma management, who works in the prestigious Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), New York. In the next three days, I attended multiple ASCO sessions, heard landmark new research unveiled in real-time, ran into some of my Indian contemporaries and seniors who were there to present their research over there. It is hard to not be overwhelmed by the sheer number of people around you, brimming with ideas and talent in the huge venue that tires you physically and mentally. The key is to take a deep breath and remember you also came here as an achiever and further growth can happen if you engage with the sea of talent around you. There were social events everyday that we got the opportunity to attend by virtue of being IDEA awardees, and of course the lovely city of Chicago was a delight to sightsee at. I made friends from all over the world and it was great to sit through the educational sessions with new buddies in tow. 

As the conference drew to a close, the palpable delight of visiting MSKCC surfaced - so one wave of sadness led to a surge of a happy one. New York was a melting pot of diversity and energy with something exciting happening at every nook and corner. Everyone was pacing down the footpaths doing their own thing, no judgments, and only hustle. I particularly relished all the food served at the Halal food counters and felt as if this city could absorb anyone and make them its own. I attended the Sarcoma clinics and cellular therapy rounds at MSKCC over a period of 3 days. I gained an insight into their tumor boards, patient work-ups, follow-ups, treatment plans and within the confines of my limited role as an observer, interacted with the doctors and patients. The differences in the access to care, time devoted per patient and the focus on holistic management rather than focussed "medical" management stood out to me in contrast to the medical system I am used to. Yet, the rawness of breaking a news to a patient, being by their side in the difficult journey and striving to devise the best possible plan for each patient remains common. I will never forget the thrill of sitting beside renowned oncologist Dr Robert Maki and listening to his clinical insights and even have him accept my suggestions for a patient, gleefully remembering how I had cited his papers in my own thesis publication.

All in all, this experience is truly once in a lifetime and it reminded me that you have to actively pursue an opportunity for it to culminate in the result. And sometimes, the result can be as incredible as an IDEA Award.