Summary of Program
The Upper Gastrointestinal Surgery Research Program focuses on major resection for upper gastrointestinal associated cancer within RPAH, including liver, pancreas, gastric and oesophageal. A comprehensive database was established (HUGO) to facilitate greater insight for researchers and clinicians into these very complex procedures. The collection of data allows for collaboration with other institutions, as well as easy access for clinicians within RPAH to monitor outcomes and perform quality improvement activities. The program also provides a format for a multidisciplinary team to discuss complex cases.
Highlights
- The Upper Gastrointestinal Research Program has recorded >1000 major cancer surgeries performed at RPAH since August 2017. The information from all these procedures are entered prospectively into the HUGO database, which include patient characteristics and extensive surgical outcomes. A number of research studies are nested within the HUGO Most recently the program started recruitment for the UNIQUE study (Upper Gastrointestinal Quality of life). This prospective cohort study aims to investigate quality of life outcomes following surgery for liver, biliary tract, pancreas, stomach and oesophageal disease. This long-term study will follow patients up to 5 years postoperatively.
- The Very SuPPLe Trial is a randomised controlled trial that is investigating the effectiveness of preoperative very low calorie/energy diet two weeks prior to surgery on liver stiffness and size. This project received support from two external grants and is currently recruiting patients.
- An artificial intelligence diagnosis study is underway, which looks to use deep learning to develop models that aid in diagnosis, and ultimately surgical decisions around hepatobiliary and pancreatic tumours. This study will be conducted in collaboration with the computational neuroimaging group at the Brain and Mind Centre, The University of Sydney.
- The Fit-4-Home Trial was a randomised controlled trial that investigated the use of electronic devices in encouraging patients to move after surgery, reducing their hospital stay. This was a collaboration between RPAH and Chris O’Brien Lifehouse (COBLH). The results of the trial are now published in the ANZ Journal of Surgery.
If you would like to get involved with our Upper Gastrointestinal Surgery Research Program, submit an expression of interest HERE.