Biography

Dr Rick Abraham graduated from the University of Queensland with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery in 1985. He trained in medical oncology at the Royal Brisbane and Royal Melbourne Hospitals. He then completed a post-graduate clinical research fellowship at the University of Toronto in the Autologous Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit (breast cancer program) under the supervision of Drs Michael Crump and Paul Goss, investigating high dose chemotherapy strategies to treat high risk adjuvant and metastatic disease patients.

Whilst in Canada, he also completed a masters degree in clinical epidemiology with Professors John Mc Laughlin and Steven Narod (co-discover of the BRCA1/2 gene mutations), exploring the relationship between hereditary ovarian cancer and outcomes following chemotherapy. On his return to Brisbane, Dr Abraham was appointed to the Royal Brisbane and Prince Charles Hospital as a staff specialist in oncology. He has been heavily involved in teaching undergraduate and post-graduate medical students in addition to being a lead investigator for numerous major international trials.

Despite having left the RBH to pursue full time private practice in 2012, Dr Abraham remains passionate about clinical research and has a major interest in the treatment of breast, lung, urological and gastrointestinal tract malignancies. Dr Abraham has been a previous chair of the Clinical Oncological Society of Australia Lung Cancer Group and a member of the Queensland Co-operative Oncology Group steering committee since its inception. This group is intimately involved in overseeing the funding of clinical trial nursing and data management support across oncology centres throughout Queensland. Dr Abraham consults at several northside locations, including Icon Cancer Centre Chermside and Holy Spirit Northside Private Hospital.