Browse topics
Medical oncology
35 notes, 106 questions and 298 flashcards.
Tier 1 is core knowledge expected of every trainee. Tier 2 is deeper or less common.
Presentations
- Fluid and electrolyte disturbances in cancer patientsFree sampleThe electrolyte problems cancer and its treatment cause (SIADH, immunotherapy endocrinopathies, cisplatin and EGFR antibody magnesium wasting, tumour lysis, spurious results) and how to sort them on the ward.Tier 1, approach to a presentation, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
- Nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea and mucositis from cancer therapyAntiemetic prophylaxis by emetic risk, breakthrough and anticipatory nausea, grading and treating chemotherapy and immunotherapy diarrhoea, and preventing and managing oral mucositis.Tier 1, approach to a presentation, 4 questions, 10 flashcards
Key conditions
- Cancer-associated thromboembolismWhy cancer clots, the Khorana score and outpatient prophylaxis (AVERT, CASSINI), choosing a DOAC or LMWH for treatment (Caravaggio, Hokusai, SELECT-D), duration, thrombocytopenia, brain tumours, catheter clots and recurrence on anticoagulation.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
- Organ toxicity of systemic cancer therapyMyelosuppression and G-CSF, alopecia, anthracycline and trastuzumab cardiotoxicity under the ESC 2022 cardio-oncology guideline, drug-induced pneumonitis, neuropathy, and renal, liver, ear, fertility and late effects.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 10 flashcards
Cancer
- Breast cancerFree sampleScreening and the triple test, breast imaging, receptor subtypes, stage-based surgery, radiotherapy and systemic therapy, the trials behind adjuvant and metastatic treatment, and survivorship issues the physician manages.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 10 flashcards
- Pancreatic cancerRisk factors and who to survey, painless jaundice and new diabetes, pancreatic-protocol CT and resectability, CA 19-9 traps, adjuvant and neoadjuvant chemotherapy, metastatic regimens including the 2026 RAS inhibitor update, and supportive care.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
- Prostate cancerThe 2026 Australian PSA testing guideline, MRI before biopsy, ISUP grade groups and risk groups, active surveillance versus radical treatment, androgen deprivation and its harms, and treatment intensification in hormone-sensitive and castration-resistant metastatic disease.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
Metastatic disease manifestations
- Cerebral metastasesWhich cancers spread to the brain, MRI features, dexamethasone and seizure rules, the GPA score, radiosurgery versus whole-brain radiotherapy and the trials behind the shift, surgery, brain-penetrant systemic therapy, leptomeningeal disease and driving.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Hypercalcaemia of malignancyThe four mechanisms (PTHrP, osteolysis, calcitriol, ectopic PTH), the tumours behind each, rehydration, zoledronic acid, denosumab and calcitonin, treating myeloma and lymphoma, and prognosis and goals of care.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Malignant pleural effusion, ascites and cardiac tamponadeRecognising and draining malignant pleural, peritoneal and pericardial fluid; IPC versus talc and the trials behind them, the LENT score, SAAG in malignant ascites, and the echo signs and management of malignant tamponade.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Malignant spinal cord compressionBack pain in a person with cancer as the early warning, whole-spine MRI within 24 hours, dexamethasone 16 mg, stability (SINS) and epidural compression (Bilsky) grading, choosing surgery or radiotherapy (Patchell, SCORAD), myeloma and lymphoma, and nursing and rehabilitation care.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Superior vena cava obstructionMalignant and device-related SVC obstruction, the Yu severity grade, CT venography and getting tissue before steroids, and choosing between stenting, chemotherapy and radiotherapy.Tier 1, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
Less common or complex conditions
- Endocrine syndromes associated with malignancyThe hormones tumours make (ADH, PTHrP, ACTH, big IGF-2, FGF23, hCG, calcitriol, EPO), which tumours make them and the biochemical pattern of each, how to tell paraneoplastic from treatment-related endocrinopathies, and the first-line fixes while the cancer is treated.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Liver malignancy, primary and secondaryMetastases versus primary liver cancer, who gets HCC surveillance under the 2025 Australian guideline, diagnosing HCC on multiphase imaging without biopsy, BCLC staging and treatment, first-line immunotherapy combinations, cholangiocarcinoma and resectable colorectal metastases.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Paraneoplastic syndromesHormonal and immune mechanisms, the classic syndrome-tumour pairs across endocrine, neurological, skin, blood, renal and rheumatological systems, how to search for the hidden cancer, and why treating the tumour comes first.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
Cancer
- Carcinoma of unknown primaryA focused work-up for metastatic cancer with no obvious primary, the immunohistochemistry that points to a site, the favourable subsets treated like a known cancer, empirical chemotherapy for the rest, and where molecular profiling (CUPISCO) now fits.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Head and neck cancerRed flags for mouth, pharyngeal and laryngeal cancer, HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer and why it behaves differently, FNA rather than open biopsy of a neck lump, cisplatin chemoradiation, the 2025 perioperative immunotherapy trials, and the late effects physicians manage.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
- MesotheliomaAsbestos and the long latency, telling mesothelioma from benign asbestos disease, thoracoscopic biopsy and the BAP1 and MTAP stains, histology and prognosis, nivolumab-ipilimumab or chemo-immunotherapy first line, why radical surgery has fallen away, and notification and compensation in Australia.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
Genitourinary malignancies
- Bladder cancerSmoking and visible haematuria, cystoscopy and CT urogram, non-muscle-invasive versus muscle-invasive disease, BCG and its complications, neoadjuvant cisplatin before cystectomy, and enfortumab vedotin with pembrolizumab for advanced urothelial cancer.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
- Testicular cancerGerm cell tumours in young men, the painless lump and scrotal ultrasound, AFP, beta-hCG and LDH and their half-lives, inguinal orchidectomy, surveillance for stage I disease, BEP by IGCCCG risk group, and the late effects of cure.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
Gynaecological malignancies
- Cervical cancer and cervical screeningHow the National Cervical Screening Program replaced the Pap smear with 5-yearly HPV testing and self-collection, what each result means, the symptoms that need referral whatever the screening history, FIGO 2018 staging, and surgery, chemoradiation and immunotherapy under the 2026 ESMO guideline.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
- Ovarian cancerHistological types and their markers, BRCA and Lynch, vague symptoms and the CA125 plus ultrasound work-up, why there is no screening, cytoreductive surgery with carboplatin-paclitaxel, PARP inhibitor maintenance and its PBS limits, and platinum sensitivity at relapse.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
- Uterine cancerUnopposed oestrogen and Lynch syndrome as causes, postmenopausal bleeding and the 4 mm ultrasound threshold, tissue sampling, FIGO 2023 staging with molecular class, laparoscopic hysterectomy, adjuvant therapy and chemo-immunotherapy for advanced disease.Tier 2, condition, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
Investigations and procedures
- Chest X-ray and staging CT in cancerFree sampleWhat a chest X-ray can and can't exclude, the cancer patterns to recognise, how a contrast staging CT of chest, abdomen and pelvis is read, nodal and adrenal thresholds, and measuring response with RECIST 1.1 and iRECIST, with a worked example.Tier 1, medical sciences concept, 3 questions, 7 flashcards
- Genetic testing in cancer including BRCAGermline versus tumour testing, who qualifies under eviQ and the Medicare BRCA items, reading a result (pathogenic, VUS, uninformative), tumour-first pathways that reveal germline variants, ctDNA and clonal haematopoiesis traps, and when a result changes treatment.Tier 1, medical sciences concept, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- MRI, PET and nuclear bone scan in cancerWhere MRI beats CT in cancer, how FDG, PSMA and DOTATATE PET work and what causes false results, Medicare-funded PET indications, and how to read a bone scan, including the superscan, the flare phenomenon and the lytic lesions it misses.Tier 1, medical sciences concept, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Tissue diagnosis: histopathology, cytology and biopsy techniquesChoosing FNA, core, excision or fluid cytology for a suspected cancer, handling the specimen so biomarkers still work, reading a structured histopathology report step by step, the immunohistochemistry panels that name the tumour, and the biopsies that should never be done.Tier 1, medical sciences concept, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
- Tumour markersWhat serum tumour markers can and can't do, with worked results; the markers that diagnose (AFP, beta-hCG, PSA), the ones that only monitor (CEA, CA 125, CA 19-9, CA 15-3), half-life kinetics, the risk of malignancy index, and the false positives and assay traps examiners like.Tier 1, medical sciences concept, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Liver function tests in cancer and chemotherapyHow to read abnormal LFTs in a patient with cancer, with worked results; metastases versus obstruction versus drug injury, CTCAE v6.0 grading (which changed for abnormal baselines), hepatic dose modification, checkpoint inhibitor hepatitis and hepatitis B reactivation.Tier 2, medical sciences concept, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Performance status: ECOG and KarnofskyHow to score ECOG (WHO) and Karnofsky performance status and the Australia-modified Karnofsky (AKPS), with worked cases; how they convert, why they predict survival and treatment benefit, where they appear in prognostic scores, trials and PBS criteria, and when a poor score shouldn't rule out treatment.Tier 2, medical sciences concept, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
- Pre-chemotherapy screening investigationsThe work-up before systemic anticancer therapy, with worked results; baseline bloods and ADDIKD kidney function, universal hepatitis B screening and who needs prophylaxis, HIV, HCV, Strongyloides and TB, DPYD genotyping, cardiac, hearing and lung baselines by drug, pregnancy, fertility, dental review and vaccination.Tier 2, medical sciences concept, 3 questions, 8 flashcards
Specific issues
- Immune toxicity of checkpoint inhibitorsBaseline and monitoring tests before checkpoint inhibitors, a stepwise approach to the unwell patient, how to read LFT, thyroid, cortisol, troponin and stool results in suspected irAEs, organ-by-organ management by grade, and when to stop or rechallenge.Tier 1, medical sciences concept, 3 questions, 9 flashcards
- Oncology in elderly and adolescent patientsGeriatric assessment and chemotherapy toxicity tools (G8, CARG, GAP70+, INTEGERATE), dosing and screening decisions in older people, and the cancers, fertility, psychosocial and late-effect issues of adolescents and young adults.Tier 1, topic overview, 3 questions, 10 flashcards
- Palliative careEarly integrated palliative care in cancer (Temel, ENABLE III, ASCO 2024), referral triggers, prognostic tools, anticancer treatment near the end of life, Australian services and funding, advance care planning and voluntary assisted dying laws, and culturally safe care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and Māori people.Tier 1, topic overview, 3 questions, 8 flashcards