YOUNG ONCOLOGISTS GROUP OF AUSTRALIA (yoga) cOMMITTEE
Young Oncologists are consultant medical oncologists who are working in all States and Territories of Australia, are financial members of the Medical Oncology Group of Australia (MOGA) and who are within five years of receipt of their fellowship (FRACP or equivalent).
YOGA SUB-COMMITTEE ROLE
The role of the YOGA Sub-Committee is to provide young medical oncologists with a networking framework and assistance to facilitate their transition from advanced trainee to consultant. This is achieved through:
Creating and implementing educational and professional programs relevant to young Australian oncologists in their daily practice and/or research activities.
Informing and advising the MOGA Executive about workplace, professional challenges and career development issues concerning Australian young oncologists.
Encouraging and facilitating the professional development, peer support and representation of young oncologists.
Promoting opportunities for developing research skills and conducting research among young Australian oncologists.
Working and collaborating with global young oncologist networks and organisations.
YOGA Committee MEMBERS
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Dr Wei Yen Chan is an early career medical oncologist, phase I clinical trials fellow, and PhD candidate at Macquarie University. She completed her specialty training in 2022 across Liverpool Hospital, St Vincent’s Hospital, and Chris O’Brien Lifehouse. Her PhD focuses on the application of liquid biopsy technologies for the detection of minimal residual disease in early-stage melanoma. She is interested in the use of circulating tumour DNA and precision oncology to guide therapeutic decision-making, early-phase clinical trials, and translational research to improve patient outcomes. She is also passionate about medical education, trainee wellbeing, and supporting the professional development of young oncologists.
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Dr Tharani Krishnan is an early career medical oncologist affiliated with Flinders Medical Centre, Calvary North Adelaide Hospital and Flinders University. She has strong clinical interests in gastrointestinal, head & neck and breast cancer. She undertook advanced training in South Australia, followed by a gastrointestinal cancers fellowship at BC Cancer Vancouver. She has completed a Master of Health Leadership and Management at the University of New South Wales. She is passionate about trainee education, mentorship and wellbeing, and was an inaugural member of the Medical Oncology Training SA (MOTSA) committee and a previous MOGA and RACP National Trainee Representative.
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Dr Betty Zhang is a medical oncologist at the Mater Hospital Brisbane, a research fellow with the Australian Rare Cancer Portal and a visiting fellow with the Garvan Institute of Medical Research. Betty undertook oncology training in Sydney and Newcastle and spent one year undertaking cancer genomics research at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research. Betty's interests lie in rare cancers, cancer “omics”, and statistics. As a committee member for QLD, Betty is committed to enhancing the collaboration of YOGIs around the country and supporting them on their post-fellowship pathways.
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Dr Andrew Parsonson is an early career medical oncologist affiliated with the Nepean Cancer Care Centre in Sydney, Australia. He was the inaugural advanced trainee representative on the Clinical Oncology Society of Australia (COSA) council and has a strong interest in the education and professional development of trainees and young oncologists. His current research interests are in the role of digital health in cancer care and clinical trials and he has recently commenced a part-time PhD through the Australian Institute of Health Innovation (AIHI) at Macquarie University. He has recently been appointed to be a member on the drug utilisation subcommittee (DUSC) to provide advice on oncology drug utilisation to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC).
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Dr Richard Kelly is an early career medical oncologist affiliated with the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Victoria, with a keen interest in melanoma and genitourinary cancers and experience in phase I trials. He is currently undertaking a full-time PhD within Health Services Research, looking at methods to improve the integration of patient values and goals into treatment decision processes, particularly in the setting of advanced cancer. He is passionate about empowering patients to receive treatment that aligns with what matters most to them and developing ways to routinely measure this critical metric to achieve broad impact. He is a member of the International Shared Decision Making (IDSM) Society’s special interest consortium for AI and Shared Decision Making.
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Dr Mark Nalder is a Medical Oncologist and early career researcher. He is currently the Medical Oncology Fellow at Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, QLD. He has strong clinical interests in thoracic, gastrointestinal, genitourinary and melanoma malignancies. His research interests include precision medicine, pharmacogenetics and the utilisation of real-world evidence to guide treatment decisions for patients with cancer. He is currently completing a PhD at the University of Queensland, investigating the real-world outcomes of patients treated with immunotherapy. He is passionate about reducing treatment related toxicity and is the principal investigator on a multi-site trial of prospective DPYD genotype guided dosing for patients receiving fluoropyrimidine chemotherapy.
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Dr Deborah Zhou is a medical oncologist at St George and Sutherland Hospital. She holds a Fellowship of Royal Australasian College of Physician and Master of Public Health. Dr Zhou is a Research Fellow at the NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre and is currently working in the thoracic portfolio with the Thoracic Oncology Group of Australasia (TOGA). She is also currently pursuing a PhD with the NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre.
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Dr Joshua Hurwitz is an early-career medical oncologist with a special interest in breast and genitourinary cancers, as well as a passion for trials and education. He has worked in various institutions across three states over fifteen years and is dedicated to quality improvement for both patients and clinicians. Josh currently holds a public appointment at Monash Health and works at Epworth HealthCare. He is the co-host of the internationally acclaimed podcast “Oncology for the Inquisitive Mind”. Josh completed his oncology training at the South West Sydney Local Health District and St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney. He then undertook further specialisation in breast and genitourinary cancer through a prestigious fellowship at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research and The Kinghorn Cancer Centre in Sydney.
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Dr Connolly is an early career medical oncologist and clinician researcher who is affiliated with Chris O Brien Lifehouse (COBLH), the Children’s Medical Research Institute (CMRI) and the University of Sydney. She is currently undertaking full time PhD research in sarcoma proteomics after completing a sarcoma clinical research fellowship at COBLH. Her interests include sarcoma, rare cancers and AYA care. She is passionate about education and professional development of trainees and young oncologists. She is a current member of the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) Young Oncologists Committee (YOC) and has been an inaugural member of the NSW/ACT Medical Oncology Advanced Trainee Committee (MOAT) and several Royal College of Physicians (RACP) education committees. Through these she has facilitated the development of a number of physician education resources and programmes.
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Dr Tim Slattery is an early career medical oncologist, currently working at Fiona Stanley Hospital and Geraldton Regional Hospital. He completed his training across Fiona Stanley Hospital and Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in Western Australia, as well as the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust in London, United Kingdom. His interests include genitourinary, colorectal, lung and skin cancers, as well rural & regional cancer care, and exercise & well-being in cancer. He also has a passion for education, career equity, advocacy & mentorship, and is involved in various related service improvement programs. He is currently working across many solid tumour clinical trials, including the active development of a phase 1 trial looking at the addition of chemotherapy to radionuclide therapy for the treatment of prostate cancer.
Tim is also a qualified general & acute care physician with significant regional experience, having received RACP fellowship in 2020.
If you have any state-specific questions please feel free to email the MOGA secretariat and it will be forwarded to the appropriate person
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There are many ways for members to get involved in supporting our work and help us in shaping the future of the Australian Medical Oncology profession.
EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS
Members enjoy exclusive professional development programs specifically designed for medical oncology trainees and consultants
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YOGA IN THE NEWS
Cancer trials, and the need for a greater diversity of participants
Dr Abhi Pal is a young medical oncologist at Bankstown and Liverpool Hospital who is currently undertaking his PhD and advocating for the pertinent issue of equity and inclusion in cancer clinical trials. Trial participants are significantly less likely to be from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Listen to Dr Pal talk about his important research and the need for change on ABC listen.
Introducing the New Young Oncologist Group of Australia (YOGA) Committee
27 June 2025
Medical Oncology Group of Australia (MOGA) welcomes the newest members of the Young Oncologist Group of Australia (YOGA) Committee in 2025. This year we had an excellent selection of applications from across Australia. The following Young Oncologist Members were elected to the committee:
Dr Wei Yen Chan - NSW, Dr Joshua Hurwitz - VIC, Dr Richard Kelly - VIC, Dr Tharani Krishnan - SA, Dr Betty Zhang - QLD and Dr Deborah Zhou - NSW
Continuing State Reps are: Dr Andrew Parsonson - NSW (Chair), Dr Elizabeth Connolly - NSW, Dr Mark Nalder - QLD and Dr Tim Slattery - WA
Dr BEN Shum awarded the best poster award in translational science section at ESMO Congress
Dr Ben Shum is a young medical oncologist currently working at the Royal Marsden Hospital, conducting research and completing his MD at the Francis Crick Institute in London. Dr Shum completed his medical oncology training at Westmead, Blacktown and Nepean Hospital. Dr Shum was recently awarded the best poster award in the translational science section at the ESMO Congress for his poster entitled MHC-II neoantigens and copy number alterations drive immune checkpoint inhibitor response in metastatic melanoma. Congratulations Dr Shum!