OBSERVATIONS IN DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF ORAL CANCER OVER THE PAST 45 YEARS Lessons remain in identifying malignant disorders and prevention across health settings
With
Professor Peter Thomson,
Head of Dentistry and Professor of Oral and Maxillofacial Sciences
James Cook University, Cairns
SEGMENT
Filmed in the Gold Coast | May 2026
Peter Thomson is Academic Head of Dentistry and Professor of Oral & Maxillofacial Sciences in the College of Medicine & Dentistry at James Cook University, Australia. A UK and Australian specialist in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery and Oral Medicine, he qualified BDS from Manchester University and MBBS from Newcastle upon Tyne, gaining Fellowships in Dental Surgery from the Royal College of Surgeons of England, Ireland and Glasgow and a Fellowship in Surgery from Edinburgh, specializing in Head & Neck Oncology.
He completed MSc and PhD degrees in epithelial biology and cancer research at Manchester University, where he was Lecturer, before returning to Newcastle in 1996 as Professor of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery. In 2009, he was appointed Hunterian Professor at the Royal College of Surgeons of England and in 2011 King James IV Professor at the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh. In 2014, he gained a Manchester Higher Doctorate (DDSc) for oral oncology research, and in 2016 an MD from the University of Bath for his thesis on interventional management of potentially malignant disorders.
Developing an extensive international profile, Peter was appointed Visiting Professor at the National University of Singapore in 2014 before joining the University of Queensland’s School of Dentistry as Professor of Maxillofacial Surgery & Academic Clinical Director in 2016. He was recruited to The University of Hong Kong in October 2017 to become Associate Dean at the Faculty of Dentistry and Director of the Prince Philip Dental Hospital. He has also held Academic Head and Dean of Dentistry positions at the University of Central Lancashire, UK and Griffith University in Australia. He was invited to join James Cook University as Head of Dentistry in 2021.
Author of more than 350 research papers and 2 oral cancer textbooks, Peter is an internationally recognised authority in oncology, population health and dental education. His research emphasis encompasses oral carcinogenesis, epithelial cell biology, and the early diagnosis and interventional management of cancer.
Source: James Cook University website
Media access credit: Oral Health Association of Australia (OHAA)
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Diary of a Paramedic in a primary health care clinic
Alecka Miles is a lecturer at Edith Cowan University and works as a paramedic in a multidisciplinary team at Dianella Family Medical Centre in Metropolitan Perth, Western Australia.
Community paramedic roles have a history in Australia, dating back to 2007 in New South Wales and followed by similar initiatives in South Australia and New Zealand. Alecka’s position emerged after she sought to evaluate how paramedics could integrate into general practice, ultimately leading to a job offer post-COVID lockdown in 2020. Her skills, particularly in cannulation, proved valuable as healthcare shifted towards primary care.
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AHW Exhibitor: Gentec Australia
Gentec Australia, an Australian supplier of tapware and designer of wash basins to the healthcare industry exhibited at last week’s Australian Healthcare Week 2019. Their patented basin design reduces the risk of infection through splashing from water through an offset waste, as well as other infection control features. Know My Group reporter Anne Dao spoke with General Manager for Sales Graeme Bunt and State Manager (VIC) Vanessa Beever.
In an upcoming segment Australian Health Journal will cover the technologies deployed and steps taken by hospitals and clinics in infection control.
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Analogy of the system, rather than the ED front door
“The problem of blockages shows up in ambulance ramping and long wait times, but this is a complex issue requiring whole-of-health system solutions,” according to Professor Hugh Grantham, Chair of Emergency Medicine Foundation in an interview with Australian Health Journal.
