معرفی
Clinical Associate Professor Purnima Sundaresan is affiliated with the University of Sydney, working within the Sydney Medical School and Westmead Clinical School in the Faculty of Medicine and Health. Her primary contact is purnima.sundaresan@sydney.edu.au.
Dr. Sundaresan's research centers on cancer treatment with emphasis on radiation therapy for head and neck malignancies. Her work spans clinical trials methodology, translational research, and patient-centered treatment interventions. She has established expertise in patient-reported outcomes, barriers to radiotherapy access, and quality-of-life assessment in cancer populations. Her methodological approaches include systematic reviews, Delphi consensus methods, psychometric validation of assessment tools, and mixed-methods investigations of patient experiences.
Analysis of her recent publication portfolio reveals a concentrated focus on optimizing head and neck cancer management through quality indicator development, cross-cultural adaptation of patient assessment instruments, and innovative solutions to treatment barriers. Her work consistently addresses the intersection of clinical effectiveness and patient experience, particularly regarding anxiety management during radiation therapy and implementation of evidence-based practices across multidisciplinary cancer teams.
- National Health & Medical Research Council, Medical Postgraduate Research Scholarship - project titled "Exploring barriers to radiotherapy utilization"
- Research Scholarship
Dr. Sundaresan currently supervises Chen CHENG, whose research focuses on real-time monitoring of head and neck motion to improve radiation therapy precision. She has secured significant grant funding including the 2020 "Remove the Mask" project (Cancer Australia) addressing anxiety in head and neck cancer radiotherapy, and earlier funding from the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia for decision aid development in the RAVES prostate cancer trial.
Her scholarly activities occur within collaborative research networks spanning Westmead Hospital, the Sydney cancer ecosystem, and national/international radiation oncology research consortia. Her work demonstrates strong interdisciplinary connections between radiation oncology, medical physics, psychology, nursing, and implementation science.
