Oncologist Jose Gros-Aymerich, M.D., lives thousands of miles away in Madrid, yet he recently attended a City of Hope medical conference — without stepping foot on U.S. soil. Thanks to the Internet, City of Hope now offers busy health-care professionals around the world access to its continuing medical education (CME) sessions without having to leave the office.

In their latest offerings, scientists and clinicians at City of Hope developed a seven-part CME series about women’s cancers. “Advances in the Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment of Breast and Gynecologic Cancers” offers health-care providers the most advanced information about the identification, management and treatment of patients with some of the most prevalent malignancies.

The online resource, available on City of Hope’s public website, focuses not only on effective therapies to battle cancer, but also on quality of life. It is the latest addition to an expanding library that includes more than 15 e-learning programs.

CME programs increasingly have moved their offerings online. A recent study predicted that by 2016 half of the nation’s physicians will get their CME exclusively through webinars and other online resources. City of Hope’s program features some of the institution’s special areas of expertise.

“The scientists and clinicians at City of Hope have a long history of developing and advancing new techniques to screen for, diagnose and treat gynecologic and breast cancers,” said Robert J. Morgan, M.D., City of Hope’s director for CME. “By offering this program as an electronic CME, not only do we cut down on paper waste, but we open our reach globally to all doctors around the world who are interested in learning the latest research and treatment options for gynecologic and breast cancers.”

There are no fees for participating and receiving CME credit for this program. Each module is accessible 24 hours a day and features expertise from City of Hope faculty including Amy Hakim, M.D., Ernest Han, M.D., Ph.D., Matthew J. Loscalzo, L.C.S.W., Joanne Mortimer, M.D., Melanie Palomares, M.D., M.S., I. Benjamin Paz, M.D., and Sharon Wilczynski, M.D., Ph.D. The modules range in length from 25 to 50 minutes and are available for credit until April 13, 2012. Topics covered include:

• Cervical cancer screening
• Human papillomavirus vaccines
• Minimally invasive surgery options
• Supportive care
• Breast cancer and pregnancy

Funding for this CME program was made possible in part by a grant from the National Cancer Institute.

To access this program, visit www.cityofhope.org/cme-breast-gyn-cancers. For more information, contact City of Hope’s CME department at ext. 65622.