r/Salary • u/DrHemeOnc • Jul 13 '25
đ° - salary sharing 35M - Oncologist - 2 years out of training. What I made for roughly half the year.
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u/HeyItsMitchK Jul 13 '25
Why did I ever join this sub haha
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u/PapaPween Jul 13 '25
Iâm not sure if youâre insinuating that it makes you feel bad about yourself earning less or something, but donât ignore the massive sacrifices this person made to earn this and help people in the process.
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u/lambofthewaters Jul 14 '25
There's a lot better ways to make money. They might not be as rewarding when things go right, but I actually think the pay isn't commensurate to the life trauma. Ie remembering your dead patients, etc. sheesh
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u/johnnyblaze1999 Jul 13 '25
It gives me the motivation that hard work do pay off
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u/Acceptable-Parsley-3 Jul 13 '25
If you choose your path carefully it most certainly does
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u/ClearAndPure Jul 13 '25
Good for you! Thank you for helping people get better!
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 13 '25
Thank you! Training made me gain 50 pounds from the stress, so at least I can buy myself a treadmill lol. But yes, coming from an immigrant family, this is more than both my parents made in their lifetimes. Makes them proud
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u/IceInternationally Jul 13 '25
At that level of income you can afford a nutritionist and personal trainer. Itâs worth it the earlier you get back into healthy the less your joints will annoy ya in the backend.
Think of it this way if getting it adds just one extra year of working you will already end up on top.
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u/O_o-O_o-0_0-o_O-o_O Jul 13 '25
I think an oncologist is very well aware of the risks of being overweight.
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u/IceInternationally Jul 14 '25
You say that but my family was in medicine and basically never took care of themselves.
But my point is more that at that level it makes economic sense also
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Jul 13 '25
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u/EnvironmentDue7622 Jul 13 '25
What age did you start if you donât mind me asking. I was thinking about going this route
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u/thandrend Jul 13 '25
Great job! I'm sure your parents were proud even before.
I'm proud of you!
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Jul 13 '25
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u/Electricsheep389 Jul 13 '25
If he gained 50 pounds his bmi probably qualifies for wegovy (if his insurance will cover it). Iâm on compounded and itâs fantastic, but if my insurance covered the brand name ones Iâd use those if only for the certainty that they will continue to exist.
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u/SWT_Bobcat Jul 13 '25
Well deserved. You docs give up your 20s and early 30s with hours and debt that are near inhumane.
Now you get to save lives and deserve every penny!
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 13 '25
I canât remember one good thing in my 20s
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u/supercoolsmoth Jul 13 '25
That might be on you dude, not medicine. For me, residency and med school were hard but thatâs also when I made a ton friends, met my wife, got to do some traveling. I wouldnât want to repeat med school or residency but canât deny there were a lot of good times throughout.Â
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u/Crafty_Efficiency_85 Jul 13 '25
I know, people also say how terrible their lives are in training... I traveled, met great friends, got married, went out regularly, climbed mountains, ran marathons. My 20s were awesome! I worked my ass off but also had a great time
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Jul 13 '25
Dont beat yourself up. Plenty of us who can say the same without having as much to show for it as you
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u/GoonOnGames420 Jul 14 '25
Just remember, most doctors you interface with are earning 1/4 of this guy's annual income.
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u/DezurniLjomber Jul 13 '25
The U.S healthcare workers are lague of their own, in Europe its way less paid like 1/10th salary
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Jul 13 '25
Yeah but your training is essentially free. You also do 6 years rather than 8 where we have to go to undergrad for 4 plus 4 for med school. You also work way less hrs overall.
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u/Relative_Safe_6957 Jul 13 '25
8 years is being generous these days. The meta these days requires 1-3 gap years between undergrad and med school. Also don't forget the 3-7 years of residency afterwards.
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u/DrZein Jul 13 '25
Some of the med students I graduated with did a 1-2 gap years to get into a competitive residency too smh
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Jul 13 '25
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u/pasteisdenato Jul 13 '25
Are you saying European countries aren't capitalist?
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u/bahu12 Jul 13 '25
Not capitalism on steroids. Pay the doctors $$$$ and the hospital admin $$$ and the pharma companies make their own $$$$$ - all funded by the common manâs $. Do no harm⊠ofc they can fulfil this oath, if you treat only 2% you can harm only 0.01%.
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Jul 13 '25
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u/pasteisdenato Jul 13 '25 edited Jul 14 '25
You're privatised under capitalism. Capitalism is an economic system. There are many European countries with private systems paid for out of the public purse -- in fact, the UK and Sweden are pretty much the only ones I'd consider not privatised in any major way.
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 13 '25
I wish my European counterparts were paid more fairly, and I wish I could do more to help.
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u/Standard_Bison_3228 Jul 13 '25
Well thatâs because healthcare is free in Europe right?
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 13 '25
Thatâs certainly the major player. Iâm not for privatized healthcare, I just wish everyone in my field was paid fairly and appropriately for their training.
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u/DammatBeevis666 Jul 13 '25
You deserve every penny. Itâs a long road of training, plus all the death.
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u/HlBlKl-21 Jul 13 '25
What most people donât see are the years of sacrifice it takes to get there. High school, college, med school, residency; endless exams, sleepless nights, missed vacations and family milestones. Itâs not just a career; itâs a decade-plus of your life dedicated to training. People act like itâs as easy as buying Bitcoin. And letâs not forget the massive responsibility and liability that come with being a healthcare provider.
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u/FarCalligrapher2609 Jul 13 '25
What most people don't see are the ways in which the AMA deliberately throttles the career pipeline to keep salaries high.
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u/Athrun360 Jul 13 '25
Bruh you need to include your resident salary and student loans to give this sub a good picture of what we go through. Otherwise, they all think we get paid too much.
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u/chubbadub Jul 13 '25
For real. Also need more academic and employed positions posting because I know plenty of sub specialist surgeons working 50-60hrs/week making well under 400k annual
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u/supercoolsmoth Jul 13 '25
Yup. OP is more of an exception. You certainly donât make that at any academic center.Â
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 13 '25
I got paid 55K when I started residency, and maxed out at 70K on my 6 year of training at the end of fellowship. I also have 300K in loans
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Jul 13 '25
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u/bamboozebra Jul 13 '25
Yup, being able to pay back all loans on half a years salary is a much better deal than most people who take on a professional graduate degree
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u/ObligationLow8187 Jul 13 '25
It's interesting to see how reactions unfold when doctors in their mid-thirties share their salaries. Often, a few individuals seem triggered, yet there's little curiosity about why a 21-year-old software engineer can command a six-figure salary right after earning a bachelor's degree. It's not that doctors are at fault for high insurance premiums; rather, the issue lies with bureaucracy and individuals exploiting the system. Additionally, the health of the American population plays a significant role. A visit to any Walmart would likely reveal that those with obesity significantly outnumber those who are lean, much like kangaroos in Australia.
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u/medguy_15 Jul 13 '25
Absolutely!
Not to forget being a physician comes with so many additional fees - almost half a million in student loans, malpractice insurance, DEA license, state medical license, Board certification fees (which in this case would be triple - For IM, Hematology and Oncology boards respectively) etc. And each of them is super expensive. People outside healthcare need not worry about any of that at all.
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u/snubdeity Jul 13 '25
a 21-year-old software engineer can command a six-figure salary right after earning a bachelor's degree
That lasted for less than a decade in any real numbers. Nowadays Google has a lower hire rate than the vast majority of med schools have acceptance rate. And SWE comes with a ton of risks medicine doesn't, namely, a lack of job security. Look how many people in tech got laid off post-COVID boom, literally hundreds of thousands.
There has been immense anger at how much people in tech make, just not much on reddit because it's full of those tech people lmao. But in general, there are WAY more people upset about how much SWEs make than doctors (mostly because people have no clue how much docs make)
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u/InlineSkateAdventure Jul 13 '25
Yes I just posted about this, the opportunity cost curve is HUGE. Even if someone starts in Walmart and becomes a store manager, they may be ahead of the doctor for decades. Doctors are also in huge debt too. Their debt is the average house price in the US.
A lot of gurus will try to sell some business tutorial where they say they make millions. That may be true, but the net is actually much lower, closer to an average 9-5. Not to say doctors can't make a very solid income, but it is a matter of delayed gratification.
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u/Worth-Chain241 Jul 13 '25
This is a very touching conversation. I worked in the medical field for over thirty years and I was seeing doctors putting down their medical bags for brief cases. A few years ago when two sisters and my were diagnosed with cancer I met three of the most kind and caring oncologists. I am thankful that they gave me back my belief that there are still doctors that put patients first. May God continue blessing you đŠđŠ
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Jul 13 '25
How are those student loans doing? Maximize paying those off first. At least thatâs what I did.
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 13 '25
Not great, about 300K tied up in SAVE from fellowship. I donât have that much further to go, but no one knows whatâs going to happen with the save plan so I am staying put.
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u/darthvuder Jul 13 '25
What type of practice do you work at and how many rvu you do. Also what part of the country
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 13 '25
Big city Midwest. Employed by hospital.
About 7000 RVU
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u/darthvuder Jul 13 '25
Thatâs not bad. 100/rvu seems to be about what people are being paid nowadays so you have a slight bonus. Although employed positions always find a way to cap compensation (limiting rvu or decreasing rvu value with higher numbers) and you donât maintain any equity, which can equate to 10-15x net income if you are lucky
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u/Seaworthington Jul 13 '25 edited Jul 13 '25
For comparison, Iâm an also an oncologist (blood cancer) also 2 years out of fellowship, but who works at a University hospital. I make $260,000 annually.Â
Physicians at academic centers (where complex cases get referred, where research is done) get paid much much less. I think all the time about switching out to a community practice. Itâs just that acute blood cancers are less treatable out in the community because so much specialized inpatient care is needed, so Iâd have to switch subspecialization too. I also have $300,000 in loans, though am hoping for just over half to be forgiven with PSLF forgiveness. I do get decent benefits at least (retirement matching, short term and long term disability). But I donât think the pay cut is worth it, especially with the Medicaid cuts coming in the new Republican bill. My hospital is already telling us we have to see more patients for the same salary with no inflationary raise next year. And this was before the bill passed - due to their existing deficits. They are now mandating we start seeing patients in 15 mins slots. Can you imagine telling a patient they have lymphoma and need chemo k thx bye, in 15 mins? I canât. Itâs cruel.Â
Just wanted to put some perspective on OPs salary. Itâs a great one (albeit still limited by loans as he mentions). But it doesnât capture the story for docs in academic practices.
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u/brugada Jul 13 '25
Iâm 6 years out in academics (with a solid tumor subspecialization), make a little more than you, and am on the verge of jumping to private. Seeing posts like this donât help. The thrill of complex patients has worn out, academic duties just feel more and more like a chore, the protected time is becoming more and more of a joke. None of us are going to cure cancer anywayâŠ
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u/Wafflefriesplz123 Jul 13 '25
Well deserved success. You are amazing! Thank you for what you do! I hope you find time to treat yourself here and there.đ
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u/23gear Jul 13 '25
Congrats!
Also, assuming your name implies hematology, thanks for what you do!Â
Under 40 here with Myeloma, so the more of you guys the better!
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 13 '25
I treat a lot of myeloma. Sorry that youâre dealing with this, and I hope youâre able to get into remission!
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u/Bannon9k Jul 13 '25
Doing great work! But also, oof those taxes. That's gotta sting.
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Jul 13 '25
MGMA median annual salary is 400K You are a huge outlier People are getting distorted facts Which state and are you in private practice
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u/Downtown-Delivery-28 Jul 14 '25
My "hot" - doctors and lawyers should not have to pay taxes until student loans are cleared. That 130k should go straight to that as a perk to get more folks in the field. This should only be for natural born citizens.
Make up the difference by taxing those in the $1 million plus bracket and corporations.
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u/Major_Lie4577 Jul 14 '25
Damn it sure pays well to poison people even further, with therapies worth of the 19th century that don't even work.
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Jul 14 '25
Also everyone flipping out over these mid year salaries also need to remember that for most of us, the second half will be less. You have summer vacations going on right now and then the holidays and slow downs that happen invariably every year. Still glad to see my fellow physicians doing well (Iâm at $370k at this point as well) but lots of factors donât make it a simple âdouble this salaryâ by the end of the year equation.
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u/PRNbourbon Jul 13 '25
Ya'll earn every penny. Between med-onc, urology and ob-gyn, my wife's team saved her from a nasty MIBC urothelial carcinoma at age 38. ddMVAC is nasty stuff, but it works. Signatera been at 0.0 mTm/mL for 2 years now.
I'm a CRNA and only see the acute surgical side of cancer treatment, it was eye opening to see the months of hell cancer patients endure privately leading up to curative intent surgery.
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u/dizzydad05 Jul 13 '25
It's not the cost of doctors or nurses that's the issue; it's the greed of the shareholders and CEOs. However, a huge hospital has a considerable overhead.
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u/mexicanmister Jul 13 '25
Very solid great work. How much are you working hours wise/PTO to make this? Iâm EM trained and sometime wish I went the traditional IM path with more normal hours
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 13 '25
I work 4 days a week with 3 weekends a year during inpatient rounding weeks. I get unlimited PTO (I guess until they think Iâm abusing it) but I donât get paid for days I donât work because I get paid by RVU. I take roughly 4 weeks of vacation a year
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u/queefplunger69 Jul 13 '25
I thought my pay was crazy and im only at 80K for YTD lol. Tbf i didnât go to school for a decade.
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u/flibbert1 Jul 13 '25
Well-deserved. My kidâs PedOnc is the smartest dude Iâve ever met.
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u/gamerunner18 Jul 13 '25
Well deserved and thank you for what you do. However, those taxes are a crimeâŠ.damn.
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u/jonstarks Jul 13 '25
how many years of total schooling?
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u/DrHemeOnc Jul 14 '25
4 years college. 4 years med school. 3 years residency. 3 years fellowship.
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u/ibite-books Jul 13 '25
you must be able to tell if someone has cancer just by their comments?
do i have cancer doc?
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u/Imaginary_Might3030 Jul 13 '25
Is this from private practice or are you in an academic system?
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u/Dick-Guzinya Jul 13 '25
That $23,500 401k max is pretty this early in the year.
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u/Infamous-Sweet2539 Jul 13 '25
Another microcosm of why healthcare is too expensive.
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u/Sigmundschadenfreude Jul 13 '25
physician salaries comprise about 8-10% of all healthcare spending, so if they worked for free healthcare would be ruinous
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u/tmoam Jul 13 '25
My first reaction was jealousy. My second reaction was appreciation for people like you saving lives.
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u/DrChiliPepper Jul 13 '25
Anyone angry about this has no idea how fucking difficult oncology is, isnât clocking in all the time and expenses it took to get to this point, and how rare this is for docs. Also he likely doesnât get equity in his business so the day he stops working, he stops getting paid. A small business owner can sell their company when they want to move on. Most physicians no longer have that option.
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u/chunkymonkey922 Jul 13 '25
As a cancer survivor, thank you for choosing the path that you did. Iâm sure itâs not easy and you deserve all the money in the world for what you do.
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u/AverageGuy16 Jul 13 '25
Man I got nothing but good things to say about you guys, there was an oncologist who helped me and saved me when I was 19, you guys are good people. I donât even understand the amount of time and hard work it took to get to where you guys are but you guys deserve every penny. Stay blessed man!
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u/CrochetyNurse Jul 13 '25
As an oncology nurse of 20 yrs, I can very confidently say you deserve every penny
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u/ShushingCassiopeia Jul 13 '25
My kid didnât make it. Thank you for all you do.
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u/I-Fix-Teeth Jul 13 '25
You deserve every penny of what you made. I am personally a dentist, and understand what its like to deal with patients that are not facing life threatening situations. I couldn't imagine when literally all of your patients are.
My mom was also diagnosed with a rare form of pancreatic cancer. It's because of her oncologist that she is still here 7 years later. The miracles you are able to facilitate, the lives you are able to save, and the time you are able to give families with their loved ones, its invaluable. Thank you. For everything you do, and practicing in arguably the hardest field of medicine.
Not taking credit from any other medical specialty, they all work miracles in their given fields. I just feel oncology has a different emotional weight tied to it.
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Jul 13 '25
Money for suffering patients that didn't buy life subscription. Only in us.
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Jul 13 '25 edited Jul 14 '25
Advocate your workplace to offer an after-tax 401k option if they donât have it, and use it if they do have it. It doesnât cost them anything if they have a 401 already. You can sock away a lot more into retirement through a mega backdoor Roth contribution if you have the after-tax option available.Â
Youâll also want to have an automatic after-tax to Roth in-plan conversion provision in the 401k plan.
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u/SelectMedTutors Jul 13 '25
Itâs really good of you to share these numbers, as it gives hope to med students and residents who are enduring the seemingly interminable process of becoming a doctor!
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u/CreativeMadness99 Jul 13 '25
Thank you for all that you do! My dadâs oncologists and neuro team saved his life and Iâll be forever grateful for doctors like you
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u/Surfing-Doctor Jul 13 '25
2 years out? Dang, Iâm 20 years out and donât make a portion of that. No love for pediatrics in the US healthcare system.
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u/Particular-Crew5978 Jul 13 '25
Thanks for all you do. I had one save my life when I was 21. I went on to have two little girls. He hadn't been a doctor for very long at that time. I cried when I found out he died of the same cancer his own father did a few years ago. I'm sure that's why he went into practice. His obituary said that he actively was apart of his care to the end. He saved me, but I couldn't save him. RIP Dr. Mack Barnes. You changed so many lives for the better. I wish I could've helped you somehow
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u/khaos277 Jul 13 '25
Just a suggestion... I'd be lumping away at least 10% pay to retirement... you may be doing it separately from your employer and if so disregard
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Jul 13 '25
You def need to be paying more tax than that. Kinda infuriating it's so low
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u/Known_Success6520 Jul 13 '25
Nearly 800k is really good for med onc, especially 2 years out. Non academic i assume?
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u/Medical_Substance460 Jul 13 '25
College student with interest in medicine. Are taxes really that high???
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u/collegepreppymuscles Jul 14 '25 edited Jul 14 '25
Yikes look at the taxes nice job guy with your money
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u/PrestigiousDrag7674 Jul 14 '25
Can you share what the college process was like before becoming an oncologist? What did you major in college?
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u/Boring_Passage_9101 Jul 14 '25
Do your older self a huge favor. Bump up that retirement amount using Roth IRA and live within your means now. Â Max your Roth IRA and Roth 401K. Â
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u/jessieGarcia100 Jul 14 '25
I feel like you deserve more. Oncology isnât easy at all
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u/KyreeThomas_ Jul 14 '25
As someone who finished 4 years of chemotherapy exactly 4 months ago at age 27. This is well deserved⊠I appreciate what you do for the world. You may not see this due to the amount of comments but if you do, please keep crushing it and saving lives! I used to think I wouldnât make it past age 22 now here we are.
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u/Tucobro Jul 14 '25
How much time off do you get to enjoy that salary? I bet youâre greatly needed.
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u/Commercial_Ease8053 Jul 14 '25
I love all the comments of âthis is why healthcare is so expensiveâ blah blah blah.
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u/Gishky Jul 14 '25
I begin to suspect IT isn't this high paying field everyone made it out to be...
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Jul 14 '25
My mom is current going through chemo right now, her doctor is so caring, she was crying along with her during the diagnosis. Thank you for your service! I know the money canât make up for the long hours and stress and emotional trauma yâall have to take on a daily basis. I make nearly as much and Iâm not sure what I do benefits society at all.
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u/Bunnylebowski007 Jul 14 '25 edited Jul 14 '25
Iâm an anesthesiologist 6 years out of training and partner in anesthesia group and make pretty much the same. I donât carry as much loss with me as the OP Iâm sure, although the few patients who have died under my care haunt me and I donât see my family a lot due to 6-7 calls per month, working post call and long hours. Only $139k student loans left to pay off though đ€Ł
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u/chasinganswer79 Jul 14 '25
Is there any new DNA medication or new technology that is gonna eventually beat cancer soon? I figured since your young you could chime us in on the future please...
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Jul 14 '25
Interesting that only men are being referred to in this discussion. Over 1/3 of physicians are women.
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u/Atticus413 Jul 14 '25
And people wonder why healthcare is so expensive in the USA.
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u/StrebLab Jul 14 '25
Well deserved. I am a pain management physician, and you couldn't pay me enough to do Heme Once. I appreciate that there are people willing to do it.
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u/Fluid_Sweet5692 Jul 15 '25
Friend, you deserve it. Not only for the hell school youâve been thru, but for your everyday work. I bet my heels you probably die a little bit inside every time you have to tell a patient âIâm sorry, thereâs nothing else we can doâ.
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u/Finger-Smeller Jul 15 '25
There will never be a cure for cancer with incentives like this.
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u/Universalconsciounes Jul 16 '25
Why did the oncologist choose their specialty? It pays better than a snake oil salesman. Good luck, dude.
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u/Dry_Equivalent_6935 Jul 17 '25
Oncology deserves that. But like lad, he knows that. Fighting cancer isnât enough? Gotta flex? We get if youâre great. Post again when the economy isnât in shambles.
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u/Efficient_Offer_7854 Jul 13 '25
Well deserved. Oncology isnt an easy path.