JOURNAL TRANSCRIPT
Open access
Original research
Susana Banerjee,1 Urania Dafni,2 Tamara Allen,3 Dirk Arnold,4 Giuseppe Curigliano,5 Elena Garralda,6 Marina Chiara Garassino,7 John Haanen,8 Eva Hofstädter-Thalmann,9 Caroline Robert,10 Cristiana Sessa,11 Zoi Tsourti,12 Panagiota Zygoura,12 Solange Peters13
►► Additional material is published online only. To view please visit the journal online (http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/ esmoopen-2018-000422).
To cite: Banerjee S, Dafni U, Allen T, et al. Genderrelated challenges facing oncologists: the results of the ESMO Women for Oncology Committee survey. ESMO Open 2018;3:e000422. doi:10.1136/ esmoopen-2018-000422 Received 16 July 2018 Revised 10 August 2018 Accepted 13 August 2018
►► http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/ esmoopen-2 018-000423 © Author (s) (or their employer(s)) 2018. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. Published by BMJ on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. For numbered affiliations see end of article. Correspondence to Dr Susana Banerjee; S usana. Banerjee@r mh.nhs.uk
Abstract
Background Although women account for a growing proportion of the oncology workforce, there is evidence they are under-represented in leadership roles. To gain further insights into this issue and extend understanding of gender challenges, the European Society for Medical Oncology Women for Oncology (W4O) Committee undertook a survey of female and male oncologists in 2016. Design The 2016 W4O questionnaire included questions on (1) Demographics and professional environment, (2) Gender impact on career development, (3) Challenges for career progression and inappropriate behaviour experienced in the workplace, (4) Barriers for gender parity and (5) The gender gap. Between July and September 2016, the online survey was available to male and female clinical and academic oncology healthcare professionals in the EU and internationally. Results Responses were analysed from 462 oncologists, of whom 76.7 % were women. Of female respondents, 45.5 % had a managerial or leadership role, compared with 65 % of male respondents (p