Draft:Trivadi Sundaram Ganesan

Dr. Trivadi Sundaram Ganesan (b. 1953) is an oncologist and scientist practising in Chennai, India. Ganesan specialises in general medicine, medical oncology and haematology, molecular biology, and clinical trials.

He is currently a Professor of Medical Oncology at Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai.

Early life

Ganesan was born in Karaikudi, Tamil Nadu. He is the eldest of six siblings. His father, T.R. Sundaram, retired as a Station Engineer at All India Radio, Puducherry. His mother, S. Kamala, was a homemaker.

Education and Career

Ganesan completed his MBBS and MD from JIPMER, Puducherry between 1973 and 1980. Between 1976 and 1982, Ganesan completed junior and senior residencies at the same institute. In 1981 he became a member of the National Academy of Medical Sciences, India.

In 1983, he was elected as a member of the United Kingdom's Royal College of Physicians. Between 1983 and 1988, Ganesan also served as a Research Fellow at the United Kingdom's Imperial Cancer Research Fund. In 1988, he qualified as a Specialist in Medical Oncology, certified by the Royal College of Physicians's Joint Committee for Higher Medical Training. In 1989, he completed his Ph.D. on bcr and abl genes and their products in Philadelphia chromosome positive leukaemias from St. Bartholemew's Hospital and Medical College, affiliated with the University of London.

From 1988 to 1989, he practised as a Senior Registrar at London's Homerton and Royal London hospitals. In 1990, he was briefly a Visiting Fellow in Medical Oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, and the Fox Chase Cancer Institute in Philadelphia.

In 1990, Ganesan was also appointed as a Senior Clinical Scientist at the University of Oxford, funded by the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. Between 1990 and 2005, Ganesan practised as a Consultant at Oxford's John Radcliffe and Churchill Hospitals. After an initial placement as a Senior Lecturer, Ganesan subsequently held a Reader/Professor position at Oxford, training doctoral and post-doctoral students. In 1995, he was elected as a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians. In 1995, he earned an M.A. from the University of Oxford.

Following his return to India, in 2005 Ganesan was subsequently appointed as Professor and Chairman of the Cancer Institute and Institute of Molecular Medicine at Kochi's Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences. Between 2012 and 2021, he served as Professor of Medical Oncology and Head of Clinical Research at Chennai's Cancer Institute (WIA). He subsequently joined Chennai's Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research in 2021 as a Professor of Medical Oncology.

Research Career and Specialisations

Oxford

Following his appointment as a Consultant in Oxford's John Radcliffe and Churchill hospitals in 1990, along with Dr. Adrian Harris and Dr. Denis Talbot, Ganesan was instrumental in setting up medical oncology units. These dealt with all malignancies with an emphasis on clinical research primarily into early phase novel therapies. Ganesan's specific responsibilities included setting a strong gynaecological and urological cancer practice to aid in clinical research.

Ganesan was also the principal investigator and head of his own laboratory since 1990 at the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, Oxford. His major research interests covered cancer genetics and signal transduction specifically receptor tyrosine kinases. Ganesan has focused on the conduct of Phase I-III clinical trials and translational research. Initially, this was on leukaemia and lymphoma and subsequently in gynaecological malignancies and testicular cancer.

During his time at Oxford, Ganesan supervised 17 Medical Oncology Fellows, and 9 DPhil candidates. His research has been supported by the Cancer Research United Kingdom fund (earlier the Imperial Cancer Research Fund), and more.

Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences

Ganesan set up the institution's cancer wing, and was instrumental in developing a modern chemotherapy administration day care and preparation room with adequate safety measures. In addition to developing an in-house training programme for nurses with specialisations in Oncology, Ganesan instituted several multidisciplinary tumour boards which cover all tumour types.

Ganesan's own research laboratory investigated areas in cancer biology, cancer stem cells, and signal transduction. Ganesan received funding from the Department of Biotechnology, the Indian Council for Medical Research, and the Board of Nuclear Sciences. Ganesan also supervised the molecular biology diagnostic laboratory.

Ganesan also set up and led a research institute at Amrita called the “Institute of Molecular Medicine”. The institute focused on research in basic science, as well as applied medical research in the context of health and disease. The main themes were computational biology, cancer biology, immunology, human genetics, signalling, haemopiesis, and stem cells.

During his time at Amrita, Ganesan supervised 5 Medical Oncology Fellows. He supervised six Ph.D. students conducting research on cancer biology.

Cancer Institute

Ganesan set up the institute's Clinical Research infrastructure, supervising the research of six residents appointed every year. Ganesan also led cytogenics research projects. His own research lab continued research into cancer stem cells and signal transduction.

During his time at the Cancer Institute, Ganesan supervised 30 Medical Oncology Fellows. He supervised 6 PhD students at his lab, and 2 post-doctoral fellows. Ganesan received funding from the Department of Biotechnology and the Department of Science and Technology.

Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research

At his lab, Ganesan supervises 4 PhD students, one post-doctoral fellow, and an assistant professor. His research focus covers three main areas.

Stem cell research

Ganesan aims to identify and characterize cancer stem cells and study their properties. If the cancer stem cell hypothesisis correct then targeting these cells is important for the management of patients with cancer. Ganesan has focused on serious ovarian cancer for a comprehensive analysis of cancer stem cells.

Signaling pathways

Usually, cells are stimulated by signaling through receptors which are on the surface of the cells. These are increased in expression or amplified at the gene level in cancer. This has led to the discovery of specific small molecule inhibitors which target type I and type III receptors tyrosine kinases. Ganesan has chosen a mass spectrometry-based approach and identified several novel phosphoproteins in the ErbB2 signaling pathway

Ovarian cancer

Ganesan is working on identifying oncogenes and tumour suppressor genes important in the pathogenesis of ovarian cancer. He has identified, by a novel bioinformatics approach, RNF144B and PPP2R2A, and is identifying their role in ovarian cancer.

Personal Life

Ganesan is married to Saraswathy Rajagopalan (b. 1963), an editor and publisher. Their single child, Ganesan Aarathi (b. 1996), works as a public policy professional.