Global Expert Perspectives on Radiation Oncology Education for Managing Older Adults With Cancer: Current Practice and Future Directions

In evidence-based curriculum development, a critical methodological step is conducting a needs-based assessment of key stakeholders to guide learning objectives and targeted educational strategies. Qualitative research offers a valuable approach to understanding educational gaps, stakeholder priorities, environmental influences, barriers, and facilitators that may shape curriculum design. In this review, we outline the practical application of qualitative methodology to inform curriculum development in geriatric oncology (GO) within radiation oncology (RO) training, providing a best practice approach to curriculum enquiry that may be transferable to other areas of RO medical education. Learning about geriatric oncology (GO) remains underrepresented in radiation oncology (RO) training, despite the growing proportion of older adults with cancer. Herein, we explore factors perceived to impact current and future delivery of optimal postgraduate geriatric RO education. Ten semi-structured interviews were conducted with senior RO educators from 8 countries to explore factors influencing current and future delivery of postgraduate GO education. Thematic analysis identified 4 key themes: (1) Older adults: The hidden majority; (2) Curriculum reform; (3) What hinders, what helps; and (4) Putting learning into practice. This review provides practical direction for strengthening GO education through curriculum reform, faculty development, and innovative delivery approaches. Beyond GO specifically, we illustrate how a structured qualitative needs assessment can inform stepwise curriculum design in RO more broadly, offering a replicable primer for educators seeking to develop evidence-based training initiatives across other domains of RO education.