Working Life: Radiation oncology is like virtual surgery, where you deliver targeted treatment
Professor Gerry Hanna, Marie Curie chair of clinical oncology at TCD, and vice clinical lead, Cancer Trials Ireland
'I'm originally from Newcastle, Co Down. I completed my training in hospitals in Belfast and Amsterdam, and took up a consultant post in Belfast. I was then appointed as director of radiation oncology at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia's largest cancer centre. All my family — my wife Suzie, a GP, and children Alice, Patrick and James — moved there in 2018.
'We loved Peter Mac and Australia, but missed friends and family in Ireland and came back in 2021. I love being home. It's a good opportunity to build on our cancer infrastructure and keep Ireland on the map.
'When I was a junior doctor, I was drawn to trying to turn things around for people with cancer. It's a very holistic specialty, often you are supporting patients for long periods or maybe curing them or extending their lives. I wanted to practice a form of medicine that was people-centred.
'Radiation oncology is like virtual surgery, where you deliver targeted treatment without opening people up.
Prof. Gerry Hanna, Vice Clinical Lead at Cancer Trials Ireland: "The hard part of the job is when patients relapse, or when you can't offer a treatment to change the course of the disease in any meaningful way." Picture: Moya Nolan
'The hard part of the job is when patients relapse, or when you can't offer a treatment to change the course of the disease in any meaningful way. This can be very distressing. But overall oncology can be a very uplifting specialty to work in.
'I wear a number of hats. I'm a consultant in radiation oncology at the St Luke's radiation oncology network and the Trinity St James Cancer Institute.
"I'm also vice clinical lead at Clinical Trials Ireland, an organisation that sponsors and manages Irish-led cancer trials, as well as working with international research groups and global pharma companies.
'Clinical trials are crucial for examining new treatments and for assessing their safety and efficacy. They offer patients an opportunity to try new treatments that may improve their outcomes, such as a person's survival from cancer or reducing the risk of cancer coming back.
'Most patients who take part in clinical trials do so because they know it will help patients in the future.
'Clinical trials are also really important for hospitals, as they bring higher levels of oversight, and this high quality of care creates an ethos of excellence among clinical teams.'
As part of its 'Just Ask' campaign, Cancer Trials Ireland is encouraging people with cancer undergoing treatment to 'just ask' their doctors about the clinical trial options open to them. More details: cancertrials.ie/JustAsk+-ACI
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