Young lung cancer researchers win national honours

Two young clinician-scientists at the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS), are helping shape the future of lung cancer care. Driven by a passion to integrate cancer care and scientific discovery, Assistant Professor Stephanie Saw and Assistant Professor Aaron Tan from the Department of Head, Neck and Thoracic Oncology are embarking on projects aimed at making lung cancer treatment more precise and personalised. 

Both Asst Prof Saw and Asst Prof Tan were recently awarded the National Medical Research Council (NMRC) Transition Award for rising stars doing translational research in Singapore.

Different starts, same goal 

The research bug bit Asst Prof Aaron Tan early. During his medical training in Sydney, he realised that laboratory discoveries have the potential to transform patient care and improve clinical outcomes. This motivated him to pursue a PhD alongside his medical degree, so that he could work towards a career that integrated patient care and scientific investigation, with the ultimate goal of developing more effective treatments. 

Asst Prof Aaron Tan (centre) receiving the Australian Young Innovators & Scientists Award given by the Australian government in 2008. 

Singapore-trained Asst Prof Stephanie Saw, on the other hand, didn’t initially expect research to play a big role in her career. Following the completion of her senior residency training in medical oncology, she began studying EGFR-mutated lung cancer. The potential to improve patient care through research inspired her to pursue a PhD in Clinical and Translational Sciences at Duke-NUS Medical School, which kickstarted her journey as a clinician scientist. 

Asst Prof Stephanie Saw (right) doing benchwork during her PhD training at Duke-NUS Medical School in 2022.

Why lung cancer?

Lung cancer in Asia is starkly different from the disease seen in the West. Most lung cancer cases in Asia are non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), with more than half of these occurring in non-smokers. It is also more prevalent among women and often driven by certain mutations, such as EGFR, which can be treated with targeted therapies. Alarmingly, lung cancer is also the top cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. 

For both Asst Prof Tan and Asst Prof Saw, the need to improve patients’ treatment outcomes made lung cancer a compelling research focus. Asst Prof Saw homed in on EGFR-mutated lung cancer, as it is common among Asian non-smokers and responds well to oral therapies. Asst Prof Tan was inspired by the transformational impact of novel targeted therapies and saw the rich molecular diversity of lung tumours as a promising field for discovery. 

Understanding mutations to improve treatment 

With support from the Transition Award, both clinician-scientists are now embarking on innovative research. 

Asst Prof Stephanie Saw discussing the latest research on EGFR-mutated NSCLC at the European Lung Cancer Congress 2025.

Asst Prof Saw aims to improve recurrence risk prediction for patients with early-stage EGFR-mutated lung cancer who have undergone surgery. Currently there are no tools that can accurately predict recurrence risk for these patients. To address this gap, Asst Prof Saw is analysing the molecular features of individual patient’s tumours and combining that data with clinical staging data to individualise recurrence risk predictions. 

This would help both clinicians and patients to make informed treatment decisions. For instance, a patient with a low risk of recurrence may choose to forego additional treatment, while someone with a higher risk may opt for further treatment. 

Asst Prof Aaron Tan presenting his research on redefining clinical trials at the ESMO Asia Congress 2024. 

Asst Prof Tan is also adopting a precision medicine approach that focuses on lung cancer with rare EGFR and HER2 exon 20 insertion mutations. These mutations are difficult to treat because of the limited therapies available. To address this challenge, he is leveraging a multi-centre regional clinical database, as well as tumour samples to perform multi-omic sequencing and apply machine learning to predict sensitivity to treatment. 

This effort forms the basis of the UNVEIL study, a regional collaborative initiative that will define the landscape of EGFR and HER2 exon 20 insertion–mutated lung cancers and uncover better targeted treatment options. 

“By studying these mutations, we can uncover insights and strategies that may not only help these subgroups but also inform research and treatment across other cancer subtypes,” said Asst Prof Tan. 

Why the Transition Award matters 

While both oncologists have been actively involved in research alongside their clinical work for some time, the NMRC Transition Award marks a key milestone in their clinician-scientist journeys. 

For Asst Prof Saw, the award provides protected time for research and will help her build a team and foster meaningful collaborations. 

“I am thankful that the Transition Award allows me to do meaningful research while still caring for patients,” she said. 

For Asst Prof Tan the award will help launch a new translational research programme, foster multidisciplinary collaborations, and accelerate his research. 

“This award is a vital stepping stone in establishing my independent research career which I hope will benefit patient care in the future,” he said. 

The next generation of clinical cancer researchers

NCCS is proud to support and nurture young clinician scientists like Asst Prof Tan and Asst Prof Saw who bring both compassion and innovation to the frontlines of cancer care.