Educational gaps in cardio-oncology training have been identified in the results of an international survey presented at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress 2026.
“The survey identified profound gaps in cardio-oncology education during medical school and residency and in structured institutional programs,” said presenting author Massimiliano Camilli, MD, PhD, of Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli IRCCS and the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Rome. “Improving cardio-oncology education is a must—across all stages of medical training and all specialities involved—to enable prevention and early management of cardiovascular complications in patients with cancer.”
The survey brought to light a need for structured, harmonized training in cardio-oncology during health-care professionals' medical education. To address these gaps, a new curriculum and certification has been developed with the help of the ESC to ensure that practitioners can adequately prevent, recognize, and treat cardiovascular complications of treatment for patients with cancer.
“The recently released ESC Core Curriculum for Cardio-Oncology, together with the ESC Guidelines, facilitate training standardization and provide the foundations for new ESC Cardio-Oncology certification,” Dr. Camilli said.
Background and Study Methods
The field of cardio-oncology is growing rapidly, but many cardio-oncologists believed that structured education in this area was limited, so they sought to assess the current state of cardio-oncology training and perceived needs.
The Cardio-Oncologists Of tomorrow Leaders (COOL) group of the ESC Council of Cardio-Oncology conducted an anonymized, web-based, international survey of cardiologists, cardiology residents, and other health-care professionals who treat patients with cancer.
“The COOL group launched the first comprehensive, international survey on cardio-oncology education, from medical school through postgraduate training, to understand the current status and the needs of health-care professionals across Europe and beyond," Dr. Camilli said.
Key Findings
Among the 398 survey respondents, only 10% reported receiving cardio-oncology exposure during medical school; 17% reported exposure during residency. More than 70% of the respondents reported that there were no structured cardio-oncology training opportunities at their institution, and national cardio-oncology programs were only available to 19% of participants.
Most respondents noted that the ESC and other national cardiac societies were the main stakeholders responsible for developing such educational initiatives.
More than half of the participants reported preferring fellowships at centers of excellence and webinars as the best learning formats.
Over 85% of the respondents believed that all general cardiologists should be familiar with the key principles of cardio-oncology.
DISCLOSURES: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit esc365.escardio.org.
