The American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer (COC) and Committee on Trauma (COT) are pleased to announce the Call for Abstracts for the 2026 Physician in Training Paper Competition. This competition fosters the development of physician scientists in the fields of oncology and trauma.
The 2026 competition will be held at VCU in Richmond, VA on Thursday, November 5, from 12:00–6:00 PM. *Note, due to a high volume of submissions in previous years, the event has been extended to begin at 12PM.
Location:
VCU | Lambert Board Room
VCU Critical Care Hospital
1213 East Clay Street
Richmond, VA 23219
ELIGIBILITY
The competition is open to:
- General surgery residents
- Surgical specialty residents
- Fellows
- Medical Students (COT only - see below)
Abstracts must address topics related to oncology or trauma and align with the missions of the Commission on Cancer or the Committee on Trauma.
Submitted papers may have been previously presented and/or published in a peer-reviewed journal at the time of submission.
A faculty co-author of any study accepted for presentation must be a member of the American College of Surgeons and the Virginia Chapter, ACS.
Commission on Cancer (CoC) Submissions:
While the national CoC competition does not allow abstracts previously presented at national meetings or accepted/under review for national publication, the Virginia Chapter competition is decoupled from the national process and will accept these submissions.
Medical Students:
Medical students are eligible to participate in the COT competition (not the COC). A student sponsor (attending physician) must be present at the Paper Competition.
The top medical student presenter will be selected to present at the 2027 VA-ACS Annual Meeting and will receive a generous monetary prize.
Submission Deadline: Thursday, October 22.
Scope & Presentation Format:
Abstracts should describe original research in any aspect of cancer or trauma care and must be categorized as:
- Basic laboratory research
- Clinical research/investigation
The winner in each category will be selected for the national competition.
Quick-shot presentations:
All accepted submissions are expected to present a PowerPoint presentation on November 5 at VCU.
- 6-minute presentation
- 1-minute Q&A
2027 VA-ACS ANNUAL MEETING
Two of the resident/fellow presentations in the COC and in the COT competition will be selected as winners to present during the main session at the 2027 Annual Meeting of the Virginia Chapter, ACS. The 3rd place COT and top medical student presenters will also be selected to present (during the COT Breakfast meeting) at the 2027 Annual Meeting. Details to follow.
A generous monetary prize will be presented at the 2027 Annual Meeting to each winner.
Questions? Contact Chapter Administrator, Susan McConnell at 804-622-8139 or smcconnell@ramdocs.org.