Department of Surgery Staff

Meet our team

• Prof. Steven Chan, Consultant Upper GI Surgeon

  MBBS (Monash) PhD (London) FRACS

  Formerly
  Resident in Surgery:  Beth Israel Hospital
  Clinical Fellow in Surgery:  Harvard University, Boston, USA
  Research Fellow, Senior Surgical Registrar:  St Mary's Hospital, London, UK
  Wellcome Senior Lecturer, Consultant Surgeon:  St Mary's Hospital Medical School, University of London
  Senior Lecturer, Consultant Surgeon:  Royal Brisbane Hospital, University of Queensland
  Reader in Surgery (Associate Professor), Director of Surgery:  QEII Hospital, University of Queensland
  Associate Professor of Surgery, Senior Consultant Surgeon:  National University of Singapore
  Professor of Surgery, Head - Upper GI-Unit:  Western Health, The University of Melbourne

  Research
  PhD thesis (University of London) "The study of water and sodium homeostasis in the surgical patient with particular reference to hyponatraemia and sodium flux"

  Grants
  Wellcome Trust, United Kingdom: "The role of carbohydrate, water and electrolyte repletion in body protein conservation following starvation and injury"
  Medical Research Council, United Kingdom: "Skeletal muscle energetics and glutamine metabolism in the surgical patient"
  National Medical Research Council, Singapore: "Role of phospholipase-A2 inhibitors and/or it’s antibodies in the pathogenesis and prevention of surgically induced adhesions"; "The peritoneal mesothelial response to trauma and sepsis with particular reference to the role of phospholipase activity"; "Does p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein (MAP)-kinase expression levels correlate with the induction of COX-2 and down-regulation of iNOS in colon cancer tissue"
  University of Queensland: "Clinical studies of the peritoneal fibrinolytic response to trauma and sepsis".

  Editorial Services
  Member Editorial Board: Digestive Diseases and Sciences (USA): Certificate for excellence in editorial services and peer review.

  Teaching
  Teacher and Examiner:  Universities of London, Queensland, Singapore and Melbourne.
  The University of Melbourne, Western Clinical School, Medical Student's Teaching Award: 2012, 2015, 2016

• Dr. Ke (Doris) Cao, Clinical Research Fellow and Early Career Researcher

  

  Ke is an interdisciplinary researcher, and her areas of expertise include the application of machine learning, deep learning and bioinformatics in Medicine. Ke completed her Master of Science degree in Bioinformatics in 2017. She is now working as a Clinical Research Fellow at Western Health while simultaneously completing her doctoral degree at the Centre for Eye Research Australia.

  Ke's primary area of research interest is the use of machine learning to clinical data, with the goals of improving our knowledge of diseases, developing more accurate diagnostic and prognostic tools, and facilitating more informed decision-making. Ke has always had a strong interest in exploring approaches from the fields of data analysis and data mining in order to appropriately treat technical topics and achieve effective decision making from complex real-world data in a broad range of projects. Ke was successfully awarded a Dean's innovation award as well as her PhD with the University of Melbourne in 2022.

• Dr. Irene Deftereos, Clinical Research Fellow and Early Career Researcher

  

  Irene Deftereos is a Clinical Research Fellow based at Western Health. Following the completion of the Bachelor Degree in Nutrition and Dietetics in 2009, Irene completed the Honours Degree in Nutrition and Dietetics in 2010. Irene has practised as a Clinical Dietitian since 2010, starting her career at Monash Health. Irene has worked at Western Health since 2013 in both the surgical and ICU settings.  Irene has specialised in the field of gastrointestinal surgery,  and was appointed as a senior clinician in 2017.

  Irene’s research interests lie with investigation of nutritional optimisation of patients undergoing surgery for colorectal and upper GI cancers and how nutrition can impact on surgical outcomes and quality of life.   Irene has received over $140,000 in research grants as lead investigator, and is currently leading research projects investigating outpatient support pathways for nutitional intervention for patients with Upper Gastointestinal Cancers, in partnership with other health services.

  Irene also has a keen interest for education and teaching having completed a Graduate Certificate in Health Professional Education through Monash University in 2015.  Irene has supervised Masters and Undergraduate dietetics students for many years and currently supervises MDRP research students and junior clinical researchers within the University of Melbourne and Western Health. Irene was awarded her PhD in 2022 with the University of Melbourne.

  Contact Email:  irene.deftereos@unimelb.edu.au

• Prof. Paul Baird, Professorial Research Fellow

  

  Paul obtained his PhD from the University of London, UK and is a professorial fellow at the Department of Surgery, University of Melbourne. He is an Adjunct Professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and holds an honorary professorial appointment at the Centre for Eye Research Australia. His interests are in the use of genetics and risk factors to study disease and how the use of big data and artificial intelligence can be used to improve prediction models and treatment outcomes in patients for use in precision medicine. He is an executive member of 2 international eye disease consortia, initiated the Keratoconus International Consortium and is Vice President of the Global Eye Genetics Consortium.

  He has over 230 publications and is on the editorial board of 6 international journals. He regularly reviews for multiple international journals and granting bodies. He has organised multiple national and international meetings, chaired many symposia and delivered over 90 keynote, plenary and symposia lectures.  He is a member of the Department of Surgery (DoS) Education Committee.

  Outside work, Paul enjoys outdoor activities including hiking, cycling and running as well as travel.

• Dr. Matthew Wei, Colorectal Research Fellow and MS Student

  

  Matt graduated from the University of Melbourne Medical School in 2012. He recently completed his SET training in General Surgery through Eastern Health in Melbourne. His other academic qualifications include Master of Traumatology from the University of Newcastle. Matt is looking forward to working towards his Masters of Surgery research projects with the University of Melbourne Department of Surgery. His current research focuses on body composition measurements and the response of rectal cancers to systemic treatment. He will be also working on ways to improve the current surgical education curriculum at Melbourne Medical School. Matt is also a member of the Department of Surgery (DoS) Education Committee and involved in developing the current new MD course at the Melbourne Medical School. Outside of research commitments, Matt will also have clinical duties at Western Health, participating in the care of surgical patients.

  Outside of work, Matt enjoys video games and discovering new cuisines when eating out. To offset these, he also enjoys hiking, skiing and is currently training to complete a half marathon.

• Dr. Alex Besson, Research Fellow and PhD Student

  

  Dr Besson completed his medical training at University of Melbourne (2018) before finishing a Masters of Traumatology at the University of Newcastle (2021) and then commencing his General Surgical training through RCAS (2023).

  Alex first became involved with research as a student at the University of Melbourne and since then has published articles on quality of life in colorectal cancer (CRC) treatment, sarcopenia and inflammatory bowel disease. Alex is also founding member of the WestSuRG research collaborative operating out of Western Health, which has contributed to both domestic and international multicentre trials.

  In 2022 Alex received a research scholarship through the Melbourne Academic Centre for Health to complete a PhD through the University of Melbourne and the MACH-Track program.

  With an interest in understanding variable responses to colorectal cancer treatment, Alex aims to further explore the relationship and clinical impact of sarcopenia on both the oncological and surgical management of colorectal cancer. Utilising novel means, such as AI algorithms, Alex aims to develop predictive mechanisms for treatment outcomes for colorectal cancer patients.

• Ms. Jo Yeung, Research Fellow

  

  Jo enjoys working in the department bringing her skills from a background of pharmacy and business administration. She has taken on the responsibilities of supporting ethics applications for junior doctors as well as being involved with the administrative tasks of webpage updates and research documentation.

  Outside her work, Jo likes spending time in the garden as well as trying out new culinary recipes.

• Dr. Aditya Sakalkale, Research Fellow

  

  Aditya graduated in 2020 with an MB BCH BAO (Hons) from University College Cork in the Republic of Ireland. He is working as a pre-SET registrar in the Department of General Surgery at Western Health in Melbourne.

  He is currently undertaking a Master of Traumatology with the University of Newcastle and engaged in research, teaching, and mentoring in association with the University of Melbourne. His area of interest for research is robotic-assisted surgery, specifically in the field of General Surgery.

  When not at work, Aditya tries to spend most of his spare time outside whether it be hiking, running or at the beach. He loves to try and give any sport or activities a go!

• Dr. Shriranshini (Shri) Satheakeerthy, Research Fellow

  

  Shri is a surgical registrar with an interest in research, education, and oncological surgery.

  Shriranshini comes from a modest Sri Lankan Tamil background and predominantly spent her formative years in Singapore and Melbourne. Following public school education, she pursued Medicine at the University of Adelaide and graduated in 2017. Since then, she has completed her Masters of Traumatology at the University of Newcastle, with distinction. With several years of experience as a surgical registrar in both New Zealand and Australia, she has garnered invaluable insights into the nuances of surgical care and patient management.

  With an interest in academic surgery, Shri enjoys teaching, research and mentoring. As a published author, she has led numerous research projects. Her publications and presentations have been recognised with a research prize. She is currently working on Radiomic predictors of outcome in Colorectal Liver Metastasis (CRLM) and setting up a clinical trial investigating fistula formation with the Western Health Department of Surgery. Shri has been a surgical educator since 2020, particularly focusing on the delivery and reach of teaching. As such, she is also invested in research in surgical education. She has taught medical and nursing students from the University of Auckland between 2020-2021. Since 2022, she has continued her commitment to teaching at the University of Melbourne, where she now holds an honorary position.

  Passionate about driving positive change within the surgical community, Shri actively participates in various leadership roles. She holds surgical representative positions in the Junior Medical Advisory Council (JMAC) and the Resident Medical Officer (RMO) Society, where she advocates for surgical trainees. She also serves as the co-chair of the Prevocational Surgical Education Committee (PECS) at Western Health. In addition to this, Shri currently leads the WestSuRG research collaborative group at Western Health, actively overseeing range of surgical research projects.

  Her hobbies include indoor-gardening, interior design and a deep appreciation for good food. With a keen interest in visual arts, Shri has a flair for aesthetics. In her free time, she also serves as a peer-reviewer for esteemed journals like the BMJ.

• Ms. Jillianne McGregor, Publication Co-ordinator

  

  Jill began working for Professor Steven Chan who was the newly appointed Head of Department of Surgery, the University of Melbourne, about 17 years ago.  At that time the department was located at the Footscray Hospital.  Professor Chan and Jill set up the department from humble beginnings to what it is more or less today.

  Jill is now retired but continues to work for the University one day a week as a Publications Co-ordinator with the Department of Surgery.  This is interesting work as she gets to read about the great research being done by our surgeons and colleagues.

  That leaves her with the rest of the week to look after her garden, read books and enjoy painting and craftwork with her grand-daughter.

• Ms. Susan Teo, Executive Assistant

  

  Susan comes from an extensive Sales and Administrative background including events management, customer support and Education. Susan is still relatively new to the Department of Surgery but is really enjoying being able to utilise her skills and is very happy to have an opportunity to work with such an amazing and innovative team.

  Outside of work she enjoys a variety of outdoor activities and especially loves hiking across the different national parks with family and friends.