Professor Lee is a chest physician and professor with 16 years of experience in translational research of pleural diseases, especially pleural malignancies and infection. His pleural program includes a laboratory and a clinical research arm closely integrated with an active tertiary clinical pleural disease service which he directs. This research program is amongst the most active in the field. His work has translated to clinical practice on many occasions and contributed directly to reducing mortality, morbidity and healthcare costs in patient care. Professor Lee was recognised by Cancer Council WA as its 2019 cancer researcher of the year. This recognised the outstanding research of Professor Lee and his team into pleural effusion. He led two multinational clinical trials which resulted in major advancements in pleural medicine and contributed to greatly improved outcomes for patients.
He has published over 200 original and invited papers (H-index 38; total citations >4500), and a grant record of over AUD $16 million. He has delivered 250+ invited lectures on pleural diseases, including at 80+ international conferences in 28 countries. He co-edited the Textbook of Pleural Diseases (three editions), the most comprehensive text in the field, and has served on international pleural guideline panels. He has a strong record in training clinical fellows and postdoctoral scientists.
Professor Lee has worked for 10 years with the leading pleural groups in the USA and UK, during which time he had won a Fulbright Graduate Scholarship (USA), two Young Investigator Awards, two Wellcome Trust (UK) Fellowships and a HEFC (UK) Senior Lecturer Award. In 2021 he was awarded the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand's Research Medal for outstanding contribution to respiratory medicine and science. His goal is to continue to build on these foundations to foster a comprehensive research program and global research network that focus on understanding the pathogenesis of common pleural diseases and improving patient care.