Prof Tan graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery in the National University of Singapore in 1995. She trained as a general surgeon, completed her Membership examination of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in 1999 and obtained Master of Medicine (Surgery), National University of Singapore a year after in 2000. She continued to pursue the advanced specialty training in General Surgery and was accredited as a specialist in General surgery in 2003, with the Fellowship Examinations of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (General Surgery), before sub-specializing in breast surgery in particular breast cancer surgery. She attained her Doctor of Philosophy, at Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, National University of Singapore in 2013.
Her breast and surgical oncology practice covers breast cancer screening and detection, benign breast diseases, breast cancer evaluation, diagnosis, counselling, surgical management, and surveillance. Experienced in a wide range of breast procedures, she performs minimally invasive image-guided breast biopsies, breast lump and lesion excisions, localisation procedures under ultrasound, wire and radar guidance, oncological breast cancer surgeries such as breast conserving cancer surgery, including that with oncoplastic breast surgery such as mastopexy, mammoplasty, and intercostal artery perforator flaps, intraoperative radiotherapy, mastectomies including simple mastectomy, skin-sparing and nipple-sparing mastectomy and minimally-invasive endoscopic surgery with immediate (or delayed) breast reconstruction, sentinel lymph node biopsy, targeted axillary dissection, and axillary lymph node dissection/clearance. She works closely with a multidisciplinary team including breast radiologists, pathologists, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, gynaecologists, genetic counsellors, specialist breast nurses, psychologists, occupational therapists, and plastic and reconstructive microsurgeons. She also manages patients for general surgical conditions, performs procedures, including laparoscopic surgery for other general surgical conditions. She has keen interest in keeping abreast with new surgical techniques to improve oncological outcomes and quality of life for her patients. She believes in importance of multidisciplinary approach in the delivering of personalised care to each patient and their loved ones through their treatment journey and survivorship.
Besides pursuing clinical excellence, A/Prof Tan is passionate about under- and post-graduate education and academic teaching. She holds concurrent appointments of Associate Professor in the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, NUS, and Clinical Professor with the Duke-NUS Medical School, and is the content expert, Clinical Teacher and Clinical Practice Facilitator for Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine. She is Physician Faculty for Singhealth’s Residency Programme in General Surgery and Family Medicine; and teaches in the Resident Nursing programme. She is actively involved in a wide range of breast and general surgery research, both clinical and translational, locally and internationally, and has numerous publications in peer reviewed international journals.