CEO

Professor Ian Olver AM MBBS MD PhD CMin FRACP FAChPM MRACMA

As Chief Executive Officer of Cancer Council Australia, Professor Ian Olver brings to the job a quarter of a century of experience and expertise as a medical oncologist and researcher, in Australia and abroad.

A former Chair of the Medical Oncology Group of Australia and Cancer Council Australia’s Medical and Scientific Committee, Professor Olver was appointed CEO of Cancer Council Australia in May 2006, having previously headed the Royal Adelaide Hospital Cancer Centre.

Professor Olver’s expertise is widely sought across the sector and by government. He is a member of the Advisory Council for Cancer Australia (the Federal Government’s cancer control agency) and the Board of the National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre, a number of grants and ethics committees and holds several honorary academic and clinical posts.

A regular commentator on cancer issues in Australia and internationally, Professor Olver has appeared on television news, current affairs and breakfast programs on all networks, as well as radio, in major newspapers and magazines, and medical media.

As head of the nation’s peak non-government cancer control organisation, Professor Olver is a leading independent voice on evidence-based cancer control policy.

During his time as Clinical Director at Royal Adelaide Hospital Cancer Centre, Professor Olver established the first oncology clinic in Alice Springs and pioneered a telemedicine link for multidisciplinary cancer care between Adelaide and Darwin. He is a leading campaigner for improved care of Indigenous Australians with cancer, following his groundbreaking work as a remote oncologist in Central Australia.

He has written two books: Conquering Cancer: Your Guide to Treatment and Research and Is Death Ever Preferable to Life?, in addition to hundreds of research articles.

Professor Olver’s perspective is informed by his unique mix of clinical/scientific experience and his work in the prevention and public health fields. He is also a well known researcher, whose current research focus is on psycho-social aspects of cancer.

Ian was appointed Cancer Council Australia CEO in May 2006. He is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Sydney and Honorary Associate, Department of Medical Oncology, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital.

He currently serves on the Australian Health Ethics Committee and the Board of Cancer Australia. Professor Olver has published over 180 articles in journals, written two books and 16 book chapters. In 2008 he was awarded the Cancer Achievement Award by the Medical Oncology Group of Australia.

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