International Women’s Day Highlights Importance of Female Mentorship for Early-Career Women in Oncology

Megan Melody, MD

Female mentorship plays a pivotal role in empowering women in oncology by fostering a sense of community and providing guidance to women navigating unique personal and professional challenges. This sentiment is echoed by Megan Melody, MD, who urges women in the field to “pay it forward” by uplifting the work of other women oncologists and ensuring that the next generation has the necessary resources and encouragement to succeed.

Events like International Women’s Day celebrate the progress women have made across science and medicine, as well as underscore the need for continued advocacy and visibility in these fields, including oncology. This broader recognition is vital in empowering women in oncology, motivating them to pursue their careers with confidence and paving the way for more inclusive and equitable opportunities. It is also a chance to reflect on the challenges of balancing personal and professional responsibilities and an occasion to share advice about simultaneously maintaining personal relationships and achieving career milestones.

“It’s important for younger women [pursuing a] career in [oncology] to see women in this field who are thriving, who are finding mentorship, friendship, and camaraderie,” said Melody in an interview with OncLive®. “That moral support and that sense of community allows us to recognize and shine light on each other in a male-dominated field.”

In the interview, Melody, a hematologist/oncologist at Tampa General Hospital (TGH) and TGH Cancer Center in Florida, highlighted the significance of International Women’s Day in fostering visibility and community for women in oncology, reflecting on how mentorship from female leaders in the field has shaped her professional trajectory, research pursuits, and ability to balance professional aspirations with personal commitments.

OncLive: What is the importance of events such as International Women’s Day, and how do they help ensure women are being advocated for in the oncology space?

Melody: Days like this highlight the women who are in the field. Just like in any field, it’s important to bear witness to other women’s experiences and allow them to feel like they’re members of the community. [Although] I have a very, very supportive group of male colleagues I work with, there is one other female physician in my practice, and there’s something to be said [for the] bond we [share] both being women in medicine. [It is also important] for the recruitment of younger females into the field, [by showing that] we’re here and that this [field] is a great place to be.

How has mentorship shaped your career decisions, and what unique perspectives have female mentors provided that differ from your previous experiences?

I have been fortunate throughout every level of my career to have been mentored by movers and shakers in the field of oncology. Prior to and during medical school, my primary mentors were males in residency. They were fabulous mentors, research-wise. They were wonderful at helping me grow my career, and they offered both personal and career advice, which I think is essential for mentorship.

However, it wasn’t until fellowship that I wound up becoming mentored by 2 rockstar female physicians: Reem Karmali, MD, and Jane N. Winter, MD, of Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois. Dr Karmali is more junior in her career, whereas Dr Winter is established in her career. It wasn’t until I became mentored by these amazing female physicians that I saw the difference in mentorship that [their support] provided.

As much as we want there to be equality [in mentorship], that’s not always the case. There are things that women have to be aware of when they’re searching for jobs and practicing medicine that men don’t have to be aware of. These amazing female physicians have helped me weigh my choices in terms of personal life, professional life, and where I wanted to start my career.

[They also provided] the supportive environment I would need for those choices without pushing their thoughts onto mine at all. I cannot tell you how essential it was to have those women in my life, guiding and shaping who I am as a physician and where I ultimately chose to start my career. I’m only 1 year out of fellowship, and they were instrumental in helping me decide where I would do that.

What are some of the challenges you’ve faced when balancing career aspirations and personal obligations early in your career?

I’m not sure I’ve struck a perfect balance between my work and personal life just yet. I’m still fairly new in my career, but I’ve always made it clear that certain aspects of my personal life are very important to me. I have been with my husband since before I finished college, and we’ve been married now for 12 years this August. He is the most important person in the world to me, and pretty much everyone who works with me knows that. I try hard to carve out time for my marriage, because I couldn’t have gotten where I am today without my husband supporting me.

For me, a hard part of becoming an oncologist and wanting to be successful in the academic and research fields has been trying to find time for a family. I do have a family. I have a really wonderful husband and an adorable dog, but we’ve been weighing whether we want to have children.

Although I’m young in my career, I’m [at a point in life where starting a family is something I have to consider]. We have been weighing that heavily over the past year, trying to figure out whether there is a good time, although I know everyone will tell you that there’s not a good time. Trying to balance work and a family [is a challenge] that [many] women will [highlight when discussing work-life balance]. However, I want to acknowledge that that’s also probably a challenge for male physicians as well.

The hard part is also trying to figure out, as I'm transitioning from fellowship to attending [roles], how to talk about that at interviews. How do I say: ‘I don’t have kids yet, but I probably am going to, and that might mean I’m going to need to take maternity leave’ and ask [potential future employers]” ‘Do you offer maternity leave? What does that look like?’ Those [conversations] are hard to navigate, [for me as I have] never gone through a true job search before and never had to have those discussions. When I was applying for jobs, [the process] was intimidating. [This is another instance where] having mentors like Drs Winter and Karmali was extremely helpful when going through my contract.

How have mentorship and female representation influenced your research career in hematologic oncology? What role do you see for female mentorship in fostering opportunities for the next generation of investigators in this evolving field?

This past year, my research [with CAR T-cell therapy] was accepted for oral presentation at the 2024 ASH Annual Meeting, and an additional abstract was accepted for an oral presentation at the 2025 Transplantation & Cellular Therapy Meetings. There were a lot of young investigators [presenting research at those meetings]; most of us were junior faculty. The coolest thing was that, at the end of [these 2] CAR T-cell therapy session, we all took a picture together, and [most of the people in] both pictures were women. I think the field is changing, and women are being more encouraged to pursue research. That was evident to me in the sessions I presented in. It’s encouraging to see.

In terms of modeling that behavior, having female mentorship has been [important]. Dr Winter encouraged me to write my first investigator-initiated trial and helped me get that off the ground. Dr Karmali has also been a powerhouse in publications; [she created a] consortium of institutions collaborating on patient outcomes and overall treatment-related outcomes related to CAR T-cell therapy.

Both [these women] have allowed me to continue those research endeavors and carry those pursuits over to my new institution. The investigator-initiated trial I [am conducting] will be examining outcomes post–CAR T-cell therapy [in hematologic malignancies]. [It is] opening at TGH Cancer Center, which has just joined the consortium headed by Northwestern that [includes] 15 institutions nationwide.

Personally, I have not felt that there were any barriers in breaking through in research at all. My male and female mentors through medical school, residency, and fellowship have all held the door just as wide for me as they have for my male colleagues. They’ve shown me that if I’m hungry for it and willing to work for it, the door for research opportunities will swing open for me just as wide [as it does for others]. [However], I have seen my female colleagues struggle with [obtaining these] same [opportunities]. The only thing I can do moving forward is pay it forward for the future generation of female positions and make sure I leave the door open behind me.