🧵(1/4) Since the start of my fellowship in 7/2020, Kelvin Moses and I had the goal of filming all steps of a level IV vena cava thrombectomy with a GoPro for teaching purposes. We do these as a multi-D team, and after 5 attempts finally captured it all.
10 years ago Kate & I walked out of Sacred Heart Church in St. Louis as newlyweds. Even now it feels like maybe I tricked her into marrying me, but it didn’t take any trickery on her part to convince me to move back to MO & STL to take a job as a Uro Onc
@WashU_Uro
in ‘22
A great aspect of working
@VUMCurology
is mentoring
@MeharryMedical
students who don’t have a urology department but rotate with us. My awesome current mentee
@jonny_kwateng
is planning his urology sub-I. If your institution has a sub-I scholarship, he’s a phenomenal candidate.
Went to dinner at the Optimist in Nashville to celebrate our 9th Anniversary (day 3287). The hostess seated us next to my boss
@UroCancerMD
,
@AmyLuckenbaugh
et al by coincidence. When I went to pay the bill was already settled. I don’t deserve these people, or my wonderful wife.
I just spent half an hour perusing the AUA Meeting virtual site and setting up my personalized schedule of events. Kudos to the hardworking staff at the
@AmerUrological
for putting together such a user-friendly platform with the transition to a virtual meeting.
@UIowa_urology
Sigh. I have had a rough week thinking about this because I mentored Brian when he was a KU medical student and have kept in touch with him as he trained. This totally blindsided many of us who were close to him. I pray for his family and colleagues.
Merry Christmas from our family! We have too many blessings to count. I’m especially grateful that my wife and I are both off for Christmas for the first time in 7 years. Godspeed to everyone taking call so their partners can enjoy time with loved ones.
Prehab and periop optimization of oncology patients remains my research passion. These are results from the first (small) trial I designed and implemented start to finish. I am grateful for my mentors
@KHS_Urology
and the patients who enrolled on trial.
Pretty cool that our old residency Program Director came to town to check on us at our new job. It’s hard to over state the value of invested mentors.
@KHS_Urology
@WashU_Uro
@JasonFarrow10
Outstanding evening last night spending time with new colleagues while celebrating the
@WashU_Uro
graduating Chiefs and Fellows. A nice welcome from
@SamBhayani
et al during the Caulk-Cordonnier visiting professorship that featured
@allaf_mo
and
@uropro
as VPs. Now to unpack…
Happy
#NationalWomenPhysiciansDay
to my super doctor wife Katelyn Smelser. We have been through it all together since week 1 of college. Your patients -infants to elders- are lucky to have a Med-Peds doctor like you!
@VUMC_Medicine
@mumedicine
We met a lot of great people at
@VUMCurology
Uro Onc Fellowship interviews over the last few days. I am excited to see where each of you match. The future of
@UroOnc
is bright!
My heart is full after a trip to DC for
@UroOnc
#SUO23
complete with great camaraderie and scientific updates +
@daviesbj
’s birthday party, a great day of interviewing applicants for
@WashU_Uro
residency, and annual holiday party for the hospital where my wife and I both work.
Attending sponsored
@WashU_Uro
post-inservice exam celebration tonight
@Topgolf
St. Louis. Hope we see some of you at upcoming residency interviews to join our great team.
Memorable
@WashU_Uro
Chief Journal Club tonight. We enjoyed dinner & 4 articles:
-How will you measure your life?(Christensen,
@HarvardBiz
)
-Simone’s Maxims
-Managing Oneself (Drucker, HBR)
-A Tale of 4 Physicians (
@PhysicianOnFIRE
). Evocative discussion with 4 fine surgeons!
Although my day began by having a tree branch fall on my truck, forgetting my pager, and getting bitten by a patient’s dog on rounds, it ended with my wife being hired as Internal Medicine-Pediatrics faculty at Vanderbilt, so I’ll take the loss from the Chihuahua. Proud husband!
Enjoying
@WashU_Uro
Urologic Oncology research meeting and journal club with med students, residents, fellows, and faculty. Good opportunity to encourage residents pursuing
@UroOnc
fellowship to consider our accredited training program.
@oliveandoakstl
I have gotten back to back to back (to back) calls from mentees this morning telling me where they are going and it has made today so great hearing about each of their successes. Congratulations to all the matched applicants and welcome!
2022 was a record-breaking year for the
#UroMatch
❗
#AUAMatch
➡️600 students registered- highest number in nearly a decade
➡️92.5% submitted preference lists, vying for a record-high 365 positions
➡️ZERO vacancies unmatched
➡️72% of females matched, compared to 63% of males
Lots of highlights and great camaraderie at
#AUA23
, but seeing some of my successfully matched urology mentees just before they start residency is definitely the best part.
@AdityaASathe
@UABUrology
2023
@WashU_Uro
Justin J. Cordonnier Visiting Professorship featuring senior/junior faculty pairing of
@JMHolzbeierlein
&
@CKowalikUroMD
of
@KHS_Urology
. Exceptional 2 days of teaching, camaraderie, and resident and fellow-oriented education. I’m thankful to have both as mentors!
We did indeed. More evidence that multimodal combinations using novel strategies may continue to improve patient outcomes across bladder cancer. Lots of exciting trials in humans coming online in this space
Woodson Smelser, MD, and colleagues from
@VUMChealth
tested an intravesical oncolytic virotherapy and immunotherapy treatment modality in non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer models. Read ahead of print:
A favorite parts of my job: one of my partners organizes monthly urologist dinners that bring uros from academic, employed, and private practice from St. Louis and surrounding rural areas together. Superb discussions. Does anyone else have this going in their community?
We had the best hour of (talking about) sex for all people
@WashU_Uro
Grand Rounds with
@drrachelrubin
. Thank you for high-yield coverage of key topics and how to address them across ages, gender, and the spectrum of urologic disease. Lots of takeaways for my Onc practice too!
Pretty packed day at
#AUA24
watching my fellows present, having mentee lunch and hearing the latest as they all start the job search, hearing bladder cancer updates
@IBCG_BladderCA
program, and then attending Nesbitt reception with
@UMichUrology
and then
@VUMCurology
Uro Onc
Loved
@JackAndrewsMD
plenary presentation at
#AUA24
on modern utilization of PSMA imaging strategy in BCR after local treatment for prostate cancer. Earlier detection and treatment must lead to prolongation of first metastatic lesion, disability, and death to add value.
Highlights of
#SCSAUA23
:
1. Seeing residents, fellows, and mentees from
@WashU_Uro
and
@Urology_KU
present their work
2. Catching up with old colleagues and friends
3. Enjoying food and culture of Austin, Tx
4. Camaraderie from other urologists passionate about patient care
Bittersweet day as my interns from my Chief year
@Urology_KU
graduate and move on to the next phase of their career. Exceptional group of men and surgeons. Go forth and conquer.
Our program is undergoing tremendous positive growth, and the benefit for trainees is a high-volume, high-quality experience. You can learn more about the history and current state of our residency here. We are looking forward to meeting this year’s great candidates!
Chief of
#WashUUrology
Sam Bhayani, MD, gives an overview of our division, from its history and renowned faculty members to clinical experiences and research:
#UroMatch
#AUAMatch
Last event of the academic year
@WashU_Uro
with
@JuddMoul
of
@DukeUrology
as the Cordonnier Visiting Professor. We’ve enjoyed state of the art talks on prostate cancer detection, treatment, & research from Dr. Moul,
@JoeIppolitoLab
, and others. Looking forward to
@urogeek
in 2025!
New faculty member and good friend Dr. Jeff Tosoian
@UroOncJT
giving a state of the art update in emerging prostate cancer biomarkers at the 49th Annual Vanderbilt Urology Society
@VUMCurology
The medical community has been united by
@DGlaucomflecken
humor at a time when
#burnout
is rising!
One of the best ways to prevent burnout to have an effective
#mentor
The
@AmerUrological
RFC is hosting a panel on mentorship as part of May
#AUA
Kick-off event 😁
Please join us!
Rising SUO
@UroOnc
fellowship candidates: take a look at this high-volume fellowship in an awesome city.
@KHS_Urology
offers great mentors to whom I owe most things in my career.
Please email me at elee
@kumc
.edu if interested in the University of Kansas Urologic Oncology Fellowship. Work with 9 urologic oncologists including SUO President Jeff Holzbeierlein!!!
@UroOnc
@KHS_Urology
#SUO21
If you're interested in a career in Urology, there's still time to register for tonight's
@RASACS
webinar with
@urojdr
and I.
Why urology? Simple: it's the patients you serve, the people you work with, and the problems you solve. Lots of technology in the mix too! Link below.
For all med students & others interested in urology:
Join us for the next
@RASACS
@acsYFA
Hangout on specialty surgical careers, Mon 6/6, 7 pm CT
1:1 guidance from ACS leaders in urology Drs. Jay Raman
@urojdr
and Woody Smelser
@WSmelser
Free to join⬇️
Join a growing program with diverse perspectives and supportive faculty. STL is a great city: affordable, family-friendly, & still big enough to discover new things during a fellow’s entire 2-year tenure. Faculty are connected all around the country to sponsor your launch🚀.
@WashU_Uro
has continued to grow and we have outstanding opportunities for residency and fellowship training, including
@UroOnc
. I just had a weekend of call and can say confidently after working with our residents that you will graduate here with a very high volume experience.
We can’t wait for everyone to see what’s in store for this upcoming YUO Fall Webinar Session ..
@UroOnc
starting September 13th …
@AmerUrological
#UroSoMe
Dr. Jay Raman from
@PennStUrology
presenting updates from the AUA education committee. Big changes to AUA University, and also announcing the launch of AUA Institute for Leadership and Business to assess knowledge gaps in practice management and business savvy
@urojdr
#AUA22
Important event for anyone interested in our residency program. We have 6 new faculty this year alone across all career stages and now have >25 urologists for you to learn from. Strong educational leadership from
@EJTraxel
,
@jkfrankel
, and many others. DM me with questions.
Interested in applying to
#WashUUrology
's Residency Program? We will be hosting two virtual open houses at 7-8 p.m. CST on August 24 & September 6! Interact with our faculty & residents and learn more about our program during this showcase. Register here:
What a privilege to count Dr. Smith as one of my many excellent mentors. His exposition in this lecture of the Buddhist concept of Mudita -pure joy in the success of others unadulterated by self interest- is a perfect description of how he mentors and leads by example.
@stewartwjames
Current Urology Chief Resident and future Uro Onc fellow. My wife is also a doctor. We have a young daughter. It can be done and choosing a career outside of your dream is a forever compromise. If you are a med student considering surgery, go for it!
Stars of UroTwitter and role models for all of us speaking on wellness at
@AmerUrological
Resident Forum. What stands out most about these leaders in our field? Willingness to share honest, personal stories for the benefit of others.
#AUA22
For those attending
#AUA22
, what’s the hazard ratio for getting a fresh haircut in the next 48 hours? Provide us data to answer this and other key questions in urology practice via the
@AmerUrological
Census which is now open. New policies come from your responses.
@mernstUro
@ElArabiUro
Love this
@ElArabiUro
. HB Grossman et al (NEJM 2003) “Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy plus Cystectomy Compared with Cystectomy Alone for Locally Advanced Bladder Cancer”
#AUA22
: Definitely the most buzz around being at an academic meeting I’ve seen so far in my career. Outstanding programming, with my personal favorite plenary session being this honest look at dealing with difficult cases. Worth reviewing when available. Can’t wait for
#AUA23
!
@WashU_Uro
and
@SocietyGURS
fellow Dr. Dino Vilson giving a tour de force of male reconstruction topics using the framework of a chess match to guide the approach: the board, the pieces, the opening, middle, and endgames, as well as avoiding operative gambits.
Fellowship training in oncology has given me a myopic view of some clinical issues, but the results of a placebo controlled RCT of a sublingual vaccine for rUTI are remarkable & have the potential to help an extraordinary number of people & improve antibiotic stewardship
#AUA21
Pretty sure this concludes my media recaps of urothelial carcinoma advancements from
#AUA24
. Looking forward to new breakthroughs for patients with bladder cancer reported at
#AUA25
in Las Vegas.
I greatly enjoyed 30ish mins of interviewing my good friend and peer Dr.
@BogdanaSchmidt
of
@UtahUrology
to share information about pursuing a career in urologic oncology. I’m happy to meet with any resident at
#SUO22
to talk
@UroOnc
fellowship, including ours
@WashU_Uro
. DM me.
Introducing the Meet the Subspecialties podcast series, brought to you by the AUA Residents & Fellows Committee! Check out this behind-the-scenes look at the subspecialty of Urologic Oncology featuring
#auamembers
@WSmelser
and
@BogdanaSchmidt
. Link:
Finally!! For RCC - a disease that has lacked effective adjuvant therapy. This is huge!! Congrats to
@Merck
, the investigators and patients. Now we have to look for OS.
@kidneycan
Great virtual event this AM with
@UroOnc
and
@SUO_YUO
providing mentoring to residents interested in Urologic Oncology. If you missed the event, be on the lookout for more opportunities around the upcoming SUO Annual Meeting. Thanks to
@pjhensley11
for hosting a room with me!
@dipenjparekh
was our VP for the 5th Annual Joseph A. Smith Lecture
@VUMCurology
. I don’t think I’ve ever learned so much about organizational leadership in such a short period of time from such a humble and genuine person. Thank you to
@miami_urology
for lending him for a day!
More
@WashU_Uro
residents and fellows present their work at
#AUA24
, including PGY3 Kendrick Campbell who won Best Video and PGY4 Connor McCormick who is competing in the Residents Bowl with the
@SCSAUA
team.
Both Gary Paulsen and my late grandfather made me love the backcountry and the wild places. One led me there in the pages of his books and one took me to the few remaining lonesome corners of the Ozarks. Rest in peace.
Dr. Austin Kirschner of
@VUMCRadOnc
providing an update of evolving data around SBRT in GU cancers at
@VUMCurology
Urologic Oncology conference. Thank you to all of our multidisciplinary lecturers from
@VUMC_Cancer
who have made our conferences great this year!
@AustinKazarian
and
@montypal
, just read your comprehensive review on adjuvant therapy in advanced RCC. Outstanding work! This is a must-read for trainees.
We are delighted to announce the publication of Volume 5, Issue 1 of our Kidney Cancer journal. Articles on adjuvant Rx paradigm in RCC, RWE with cabozantinib in Canada, Cost effectiveness of IOs in RCC & more👇Open access weblink👉
@PrimoLaraMD
@VUMCurology
,
@UroOnc
and
@SWIUorg
dynamo
@AmyLuckenbaugh
sharing wisdom gained from transitioning from training to practice during
@SUO_YUO
Spring Webinar Series. I love this slide about how to say no gracefully (which is hard for many of us).
Congratulations to our
@UwUroResidents
Tova Weiss and Lisa Zhang for their Genitourinary Reconstructive Surgery Matches!! It has been a pleasure to work with you in our department and can't wait to see what the future holds
@WashU_Uro
and
@CleClinicUro
!
Attention aspiring urologic surgeons! Mark your calendars for the upcoming interview dates of the
#WashUUrology
Residency program. 📅 Interviews will be held on:
Friday, November 10
Monday, November 20
Saturday, December 2
@UroResidency
@Uro_Res
Congrats to my amazing wife, Dr. Katelyn Smelser, the newest diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine. I’ve known since the first day we met, at “Mini-Medical School” at Mizzou in 2006 you would always be outstanding. Caroline and I are both so proud of you!
@ABIMcert
@md_eun
with an outstanding talk this morning on building your practice as you transition out of training
@AmerUrological
Residents and Fellows Forum at
#AUA22
. One key: know exactly how and why your patient ended up in front of you and reinforce positive referral patterns.
Hipster lumberjack or men’s health advocate with a life-saving ‘stache? You be the judge. While you ponder, donate to our
@VUMCurology
Movember donation team.
@UroCancerMD
says I owe an extra year of training for every $100 we fall short of our goal.
Medical students and residents: Join me & other
@RASACS
leaders for a round table discussion on balancing family life as a surgeon on August 31. Significant others are encouraged. You’re not alone in this challenge and don’t let myths about surgery deter you from a great career.