Dr Lawrence Lu

PhD Candidate

My name is Lawrence, and I am currently working as an unaccredited general surgery registrar at the Princess Alexandra Hospital. I graduated from the University of Queensland with a Doctor of Medicine degree in 2022. With strong interests in surgery and research, I further completed a Master of Surgery from the University of Sydney and a Master of Public Health from the University of New South Wales.

In 2024, I embarked on my PhD journey with the Comprehensive Breast Cancer Institute under Prof Owen Ung’s supervision. I am currently focusing on intraoperative radiotherapy for patients with early breast cancer, a technique recently introduced in Queensland. My research examines the clinical, psychological, and health economic aspects of this innovative radiotherapy regimen compared to traditional radiotherapy. This once-off radiotherapy treatment is administered during breast surgery, sparing patients from weeks of travel to radiotherapy centres. We are in the process of grant and ethics applications and will soon begin recruitment and interviews once ethics approval is obtained. My goal is to collect data to justify the expansion of intraoperative radiotherapy in Australia, particularly in Queensland, to provide convenience to breast cancer patients and facilitate their early return to normal life.