Dr Joshua Wong
Cardiologist at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, VIC

It was a great privilege to be awarded the CSANZ Travelling Fellowship to attend the American Heart Association Scientific Session 2023 in Philadelphia, USA.

I was delighted to present research from my PhD at the AHA. My abstract examined the impact of cancer and chemotherapy on the development of heart failure in people with diabetes. This population study linked large datasets with the Australian National Diabetes Services Scheme and found evidence to suggest that cancer itself is a driver of heart failure in the diabetes population, regardless of prior chemotherapy prescription. The presentation was well received and sparked interesting discussion.

Cardio-oncology is a rapidly emerging field, so it was a highlight to learn and connect with the expanding global cardio-oncology community. America and Europe have well established cardio-oncology units and training programs and it was inspiring to learn valuable lessons to implement back home.

Another highlight of the conference was the presentation of the landmark SELECT Trial – which showed Semaglutide improved cardiovascular outcomes in obese/overweight people with established cardiovascular disease in the non-diabetic population. The excitement and attention to the main event presentation was electric with people spilling over into the hallways.

Philadelphia was absolutely stunning in the fall and I had enough Philly Cheesesteaks to last me a lifetime! I was also able to travel down to New York and meet with Dr Jennifer Liu, the Director of Cardiology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre to set up a future research collaboration for my PhD.

I would like to give my heartfelt thanks to my supervisor Professor Tom Marwick who is an invaluable source of constant guidance and mentorship and to CSANZ for their generosity and support of young clinician-researchers like myself – this experience would not have been possible without them.

Please find link to Joshua’s abstract on the link below presented at the AHA Scientific Sessions in November 2023.
https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/circ.148.suppl_1.14262