Sabrina En-Hsun Wang

The epidemiology and risk factors of gastroesophageal reflux disease and Barrett’s oesophagus

Principle supervisor: Prof Dallas English
Co-supervisors: A/Prof Allison Hodge, A/Prof Bradley Kendall, Ms Suzanne Dixon-Suen

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a key risk factor for Barrett’s oesophagus, and Barrett’s oesophagus is the precursor for oesophageal adenocarcinoma. A rise in oesophageal adenocarcinoma incidence has been observed in countries including Australia. Some suggests the increasing prevalence of obesity and the decreasing prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection might play a role. Using data from the Melbourne collaborative Cohort Study, this PhD aims to investigate risk factors for GERD and Barrett’s oesophagus, and to understand how might obesity, Helicobacter pylori infection and GERD affect the risk of Barrett’s oesophagus.

PhD scholarship: Australia Government Research Training Program Scholarships