Professor Datin Paduka Dr Teo Soo Hwang

Chief Scientific Officer, Cancer Research Malaysia

Professor Dr. Soo-Hwang Teo OBE established, and is now Chief Scientific Officer of Cancer Research Malaysia, where she leads the research portfolio. Prof Teo is also the Principal Investigator of the Malaysian Breast Cancer Genetic Study (MyBrCa), the Malaysian Ovarian Cancer Genetic Study (MyOvCa) and the Malaysian Mammographic Density Study (MyMammo). These studies have led to an increased understanding of genetic factors associated with increased risk to breast and ovarian cancer. In addition, Prof Teo’s team has created the largest dataset of Asian breast cancer genomic maps and identified biomarkers which are currently being tested in clinical trials. Prof Teo is one of the most highly cited Malaysian scientists in medicine, having published 199 research articles, including publications in New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of Clinical Oncology, Nature Medicine, Nature Genetics and Nature Communications. She is the first Malaysian to win the Wellcome Trust Collaborative Science Award, and 2 of the Newton Grant Awards from the Medical Research Council. She was awarded an Honorary Officer of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 2017 and a Dato’ Sultan Sharifudin Shah Award by Sultan of Selangor in 2018.