06Fellowship

Breast Conservation Surgery Fellowship.

Advanced oncoplastic, minimally invasive, localisation and innovation strategies to help surgeons increase safe breast conservation.

Breast conservation
Surgery · Education
Research · Innovation

Dr Chia offers focused fellowship and attachment opportunities for breast surgeons seeking to expand their ability to offer safe, precise and aesthetically considered breast-conserving surgery.

The fellowship is built around a single clinical objective: helping surgeons increase breast conservation rates for suitable patients without compromising oncological safety, margin control or patient-centred aesthetic outcomes.

Rather than teaching oncoplastic surgery, minimally invasive surgery, localisation and innovation as separate topics, the programme integrates them as complementary strategies to overcome common barriers to breast conservation — including tumour-to-breast size mismatch, non-palpable lesions, cosmetic concerns, margin uncertainty, and avoidable re-excision.

Fellowship focus areas

Strategies to increase safe and appropriate breast conservation.

Oncoplastic strategies to extend breast conservation

Focused exposure to oncoplastic techniques that allow wider excision while preserving breast form. This includes chest wall perforator flaps, volume displacement, volume replacement, therapeutic mammoplasty, breast reduction approaches, symmetrisation strategies and aesthetic planning. The emphasis is on using oncoplastic principles to convert suitable patients from mastectomy or poor-cosmesis lumpectomy towards safe and acceptable breast-conserving surgery.

Minimally invasive breast-conserving approaches

Exposure to selected minimally invasive and single-port transaxillary approaches relevant to breast conservation. The focus is on patient selection, incision planning, operative access, tumour localisation, cosmetic outcomes and safe integration into breast cancer surgery. The aim is not minimally invasive surgery for its own sake, but its role in supporting breast preservation and reducing visible surgical impact in appropriately selected patients.

Precision localisation and margin strategy

Learning around localisation of non-palpable breast lesions, image-guided surgical planning, targeted excision, specimen orientation, intra-operative decision-making and strategies to reduce avoidable re-excision after breast-conserving surgery. The emphasis is on achieving clear margins while avoiding unnecessary tissue removal, thereby supporting both oncological safety and breast preservation.

Innovation to increase breast conservation rates

Opportunities to engage with research, digital health and medtech innovation that directly support breast conservation pathways. This may include intra-operative margin assessment, low-thermal surgical devices, digital patient education, patient-reported outcomes, surgical decision support, workflow redesign and clinician-led medtech translation. The emphasis is on innovation that addresses real clinical barriers to breast conservation, rather than technology for its own sake.

Who this is for

This fellowship is intended for breast surgeons, surgical fellows or senior trainees who wish to develop a deeper breast-conservation-focused skill set.

It is especially suited to surgeons who want to increase safe and appropriate breast conservation rates through oncoplastic planning, minimally invasive approaches, precision localisation, re-excision reduction strategies and translational innovation.

The fellowship is not designed as a generic breast surgery observership. It is intended for surgeons who are specifically interested in building a breast conservation programme or strengthening breast-conserving surgical options within their own practice setting.

The structure and duration of attachment will depend on institutional requirements, observership or fellowship arrangements, clinical privileges, supervision capacity and the fellow’s prior experience.

Learning experience

Breast conservation clinics and multidisciplinary treatment planning

Oncoplastic case selection and operative planning

Chest wall perforator flaps, therapeutic mammoplasty and symmetrisation principles

Minimally invasive and single-port transaxillary breast-conserving approaches in selected cases

Precision localisation strategies for non-palpable lesions

Margin management and re-excision reduction strategies

Specimen orientation, intra-operative decision-making and tissue preservation

Research projects focused on improving breast conservation pathways

Digital health and patient education projects such as REBORN

010

Medtech translation around margin assessment, tissue-conscious surgery and surgical decision support

Fellowship enquiry

Interested in a Breast Conservation Surgery Fellowship?

Suitably qualified breast surgeons or senior surgical trainees may enquire about focused fellowship or attachment opportunities in breast conservation surgery. The fellowship is designed for surgeons who wish to strengthen their ability to preserve the breast safely and appropriately through oncoplastic techniques, minimally invasive approaches, precision localisation, margin strategy and innovation.

Availability depends on institutional approval, supervision capacity, clinical governance requirements and annual programme planning.

Enquire about fellowship

“Increasing safe breast conservation through surgical strategy, precision and responsible innovation.”