The ESMO programme of certification and training for medical oncology.

ESMO has designed a programme of certification and training in medical oncology. In this paper the background of these programmes is given, and the programme of graduate education is described in greater detail. The standard requirements are a total training period of six years, beginning with a common internship in internal medicine of at least two years, followed by a training programme in oncology for three to four years, which must include at least one year of full-time clinical training in the diagnosis and management of neoplastic diseases, accompanied by one year of experience in an ambulatory care setting.