Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41959906›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in oncology2026

Advancing radiation oncology care in Ukraine during the war: impact of international observerships on professional development and clinical practice.

Yuliia Lozko, Andriy Beznosenko, Natalka Suchowerska, Viktor Iakovenko, Ruslan Zelinskyi, Zoia Shepil, Serhii Brovchuk, Roman Kowalchuk, Eric Ford, Ben Li and 14 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in oncology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

24 authors.

Yuliia LozkoSurgery Department, National Cancer Institute, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Andriy BeznosenkoSurgery Department, National Cancer Institute, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Natalka SuchowerskaOncology Department, University of Sydney, Sydney, ON, Australia.
Viktor IakovenkoOncology Department, University of Texas (UT) Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, United States.
Ruslan ZelinskyiOncology Department, Spizhenko Clinic, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Zoia ShepilOncology Department, Shalimov Institute, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Serhii BrovchukOncology Department, Shalimov Institute, Kyiv, Ukraine.
Roman KowalchukOncology Department, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States.
Eric FordOncology Department, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States.
Ben LiOncology Department, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States.
Jonathan StraussOncology Department, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, United States.
Indra J DasOncology Department, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, United States.
Jan SeuntjensOncology Department, The Princess Margaret Cancer Center, ON, Toronto, Canada.
Rebecca K S WongOncology Department, The Princess Margaret Cancer Center, ON, Toronto, Canada.
Dylan BreiktreutzOncology Department, Sunnybrook, Hospital, North York, ON, Canada.
Stephen AveryOncology Department, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States.
Akila N ViswanathanOncology Department, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States.
Trent AlandOncology Department, ICON Group, Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
Ross KoscharskyOncology Department, ICON Group, Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
Anthony WalshOncology Department, ICON Group, Brisbane, QLD, Australia.
Allen ChenOncology Department, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States.
Daniel T ChangOncology Department, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States.
Quynh-Thu LeOncology Department, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States.
Nataliya KovalchukOncology Department, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Objective: This study evaluates the impact of international observerships organized by Help Ukraine Group (HUG) on professional development, knowledge transfer, and clinical practice improvement in radiation oncology in Ukraine. Methods: A total of 50 observerships were facilitated for Ukrainian medical professionals at 14 institutions across the USA, Canada, Europe, and Australia from 2022 to 2024, including 31 radiation oncologists and medical physicists. A survey assessed their impact on oncology care, focusing on knowledge gained, lessons learned, and challenges in implementing new techniques. The primary outcome was the success score, defined as a composite score of implementing new procedures, initiating improvement projects, and knowledge dissemination efforts. Descriptive and comparative analyses examined satisfaction and success outcomes. Results: A total of 43 respondents participated in the survey (response rate 86.0%). Twenty-eight of the responders were radiation oncology professionals (67.8% radiation oncologists, 32.1% medical physicists). The median observership duration for radiation oncology professionals was four weeks, with 96.4% also attending a professional conference. Overall satisfaction was high (mean 9.5 out of 10, median 10.0, IQR 9.0-10.0) while the success score was substantial (mean 6.1 out of 10, median 7.0, IQR 5.0-8.0). Time since certification influenced success, with ≥10 years' experience associated with higher success scores (7.4 vs. 4.7, p=0.01). Importantly, 100% of respondents learned new procedures, 89.3% reported shifts in their clinical perspective, and 60.7% successfully implemented new techniques. Subsequent knowledge dissemination in Ukraine was substantial: 82.1% provided informal training, 60.7% delivered institutional or national presentations, 39.3% incorporated materials into lectures, and 10.7% engaged in all activities. Continued mentorship with host institutions was reported by 82.1%. Conclusions: Amid the war, international observerships advanced clinical practice, education, and procedures in Ukraine, demonstrating the resilience of its medical community and providing a model that other LMICs/UMICs can follow.

Indexed as

fellowshipmedical physicsobservershipradiation oncologyUkrainewar

Identifiers

PMID41959906
PMCPMC13056684

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.