Education Qualifications: MSc (Canada), MD (Canada), FRCP (Canada)
Professor Dent's primary research interest is in the field of breast cancer, with a focus on locally advanced breast cancer and triple negative/basal-like breast cancers. She has served as Chair of the locally advanced breast cancer program and Head, Breast Cancer Clinical Trials at the Sunnybrook Odette Cancer Center in Toronto, Ontario Canada from 2008-2011. They were actively developing novel therapies and imaging strategies for these high risk patients and up to 75% of their locally advanced breast cancer patients were enrolled onto one or more trials. Recognized as a national leader in triple negative breast cancers with several publications in this area with over 4,000 citations including three citations in the New England Journal of Medicine, she has been invited to speak about her research at major cancer centers in Canada, US, Asia and Europe.
Since beginning her position in February 2011 as a consultant and now senior consultant at the National Cancer Center in Singapore, she has founded and co-chaired the 5th Asia Pacific Breast Cancer Summit. This is a multidisciplinary meeting for the treatment of breast cancer in which are able to attract almost 400 attendees from over 25 countries in the region and globally. She serves on a number of internal steering committees for clinical trials for breast cancer as well as the principal investigator for trials investigating novel therapies for patients with triple negative breast cancer.
A highly accomplished clinician leader, Prof Dent was instrumental in the establishment of the Division of Medical Oncology, serving as its inaugural Chairperson since 2021. She led in the development of the Division into one of the largest medical oncology clinical services in Singapore with a highly productive research output that is recognised on the global stage. Prof Dent is internationally acknowledged as a leading expert in breast oncology and was the first Asia-based recipient of the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) Woman for Oncology Award in 2021. With a strong research and education track record, Prof Dent is active on several international committees, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the European Society of Medical Oncology, and serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Clinical Oncology and The Lancet Oncology.
Professional Appointments and Committee Memberships:
- Head, Breast Cancer Research, SingHealth/Duke-NUS, Singapore, 2012-present
- Head, Breast Medical Oncology Team, National Cancer Centre Singapore, 2012-present
- Co-Chair, Founder, Annual Asia-Pacific Breast Cancer Symposium, 2012-present
- Co-Chair, Triple Negative Breast Cancer Symposium, 2011-present
- Journal of Clinical Oncology Editorial Board, 2011-present
- Translational Steering Committee for the OlympiA Trial (Olaparib as Adjuvant Treatment in Patients with Germline BRCA Mutated
- High Risk HER2 Negative Primary Breast Cancer), 2014-present
- International Steering Committee for the ETNA Study, Michelangelo Foundation, 2012-present
- International Steering Committee for BEATRICE Academic/Industry led intl. trial of Bevacizumab for Adjuvant Treatment of Triple
- Negative Breast Cancer, 2007-present
- Member, Translational Committee for the BEATRICE trial, 2007-present
Awards:
- Master Academic Clinician 2024, Duke-NUS Medical School
- American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Leadership Development Programme (LDP), 2015
- ECCO-AACR-EORTC-ESMO Workshop on Methods in Clinical Cancer Research - Flims, Switzerland - Supervised Dr. Vikaash Kumar, 2011
- Merit Award, ASCO Breast Meeting San Francisco, USA - Supervised Dr. Saira Nasim, 2009
- Outstanding Teaching Award, Medical Oncology Teaching Program - Toronto, Canada, 2008
- Helen Marion Walker Women’s Health Research Award - Toronto, Canada, 2005
- Best House staff Award, Department of Internal Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital - Toronto, Canada, 2002
- First Prize, Division of Oncology Annual Research Day, University of Toronto - Toronto, Canada, 2001
Selected Publications:
Eng LG, Dawood S, Sopik V, Haaland B, San Tan P, Bhoo-Pathy N, Warner E, Iqbal J, Narod SA, Dent R. Ten-year survival in women with primary stage IV breast cancer. Breast cancer research and treatment. 2016 Nov 1;160(1):145-52.
Sutiman N, Lim JS, Muerdter TE, Singh O, Cheung YB, Ng RC, Yap YS, Wong NS, Ang PC, Dent R, Schroth W. Pharmacogenetics of UGT1A4, UGT2B7 and UGT2B15 and their influence on tamoxifen disposition in Asian breast cancer patients. Clinical pharmacokinetics. 2016 Oct 1;55(10):1239-50.
Lee GE, Ow M, Lie D, Dent R. Barriers and facilitators for clinical trial participation among diverse Asian patients with breast cancer: a qualitative study. BMC Women's Health. 2016 Jul 22;16(1):43.
Chiu N, Zhang L, Gallo-Hershberg D, Dent R, Chiu L, Pasetka M, van Draanen J, Chow R, Lam H, Verma S, Stinson J. Which pain intensity scale from the Brief Pain Inventory correlates most highly with functional interference scores in patients experiencing taxane-induced arthralgia and myalgia?. Supportive Care in Cancer. 2016 Feb 11:1-0.
Ng T, Teo SM, Yeo HL, Shwe M, Gan YX, Cheung YT, Foo KM, Cham MT, Lee JA, Tan YP, Fan G, Yong WS, Preetha M, Loh WJ, Koo SL, Jain A, Lee GE, Wong M, Dent R, Yap YS, Ng R, Khor CC, Ho HK, Chan A. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor genetic polymorphism (rs6265) is protective against chemotherapy-associated cognitive impairment in patients with early-stage breast cancer. Neuro-oncology. 2016 Feb 1;18(2):244-51.
Lim JS, Sutiman N, Muerdter TE, Singh O, Cheung YB, Ng RC, Yap YS, Wong NS, Siang PA, Dent R, Schroth W. Association of CYP2C19* 2 and Associated Haplotypes with Lower Norendoxifen Levels in Tamoxifen‐treated Asian Breast Cancer Patients. British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. 2016 Jan 1.
Si-Lin K, Kiley L, Kamis S, Iqbal J, Dent R, Sim YY. Prognostic Value of Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer. Current Breast Cancer Reports. 2015 Dec 1;7(4):232-41. Trudeau ME, Chapman JA, Guo B, Clemons MJ, Dent RA, Jong RA, Kahn HJ, Pritchard KI, Han L, O’Brien P, Shepherd LE. A phase I/II trial of epirubicin and docetaxel in locally advanced breast cancer (LABC) on 2-weekly or 3-weekly schedules: NCIC CTG MA. 22. SpringerPlus. 2015 Dec 1;4(1):1-1.
Bhoo-Pathy N, Verkooijen HM, Wong FY, Pignol JP, Kwong A, Tan EY, Aishah Taib N, Nei WL, Ho GF, Tan B, Chan P, Lee SC, Hartman M, Yip CH, Dent R. Prognostic role of adjuvant radiotherapy in triple‐negative breast cancer: A historical cohort study. International Journal of Cancer. 2015 Nov 15;137(10):2504-12.
Wong NS, Ang P, Dent R, Lee SC, Lim SE, Khoo KS, Ng R, Shih V, Tan SH, Wong K, Yap YS. Singapore Cancer Network (SCAN) Guidelines for Adjuvant Trastuzumab Use in Early Stage HER2 Positive Breast Cancer. ANNALS ACADEMY OF MEDICINE SINGAPORE. 2015 Oct 1;44(10):360-7.