The share of residents and fellows from racial and ethnic groups underrepresented in medicine grew from 16.1% in 2011 to 20.4% in 2025 across cancer-related specialties, according to a study published Nov. 5 in JAMA Oncology.
Led by researchers from Somerville, Mass.-based Mass General Brigham and New Haven, Conn.-based Yale Comprehensive Cancer Center, the study analyzed Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education data on trainees in medical, radiation and surgical oncology, general surgery and primary care from 2011 to 2025. Researchers examined whether the share of underrepresented trainees changed after 2020, when professional oncology societies increased investment in workforce diversity initiatives.
Here are four notes from the study:
- Groups underrepresented in medicine were defined as American Indian or Alaska Native, Black, Hispanic or Latino and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander.
- Across the study period, 17.3% of trainees were from underrepresented groups.
The share of trainees from underrepresented groups grew from 16.1% in 2011 to 16.4% in 2020 and 20.4% in 2025. - After 2020, diversity grew in radiation oncology, surgical oncology and general surgery, with radiation oncology seeing the largest increase.
Diversity among medical oncology trainees did not change significantly from 2011 to 2025. - Despite the shift, the share of underrepresented trainees in 2025 did not reflect the racial and ethnic makeup of the U.S. population, researchers said.
Read the full study here.
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