Dr Choo Su Pin

Dr Choo Su Pin is a senior medical oncologist with over 25 years of experience specialising in gastrointestinal cancers, including colorectal, stomach, pancreas, liver, bile duct, peritoneal and anal cancers. She is well recognised in Singapore and internationally for her clinical expertise, leadership in cancer care, and contributions to advancing treatments for GI cancers.

Before entering private practice, Dr Choo held several key leadership roles at the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS), where she served as Deputy Head of the Division of Medical Oncology and Chief of the Gastrointestinal Cancer Department. She continues her longstanding relationship with NCCS as a Visiting Consultant

Dr Choo trained in the United Kingdom and Singapore, graduating from the University of Nottingham Medical School, and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (UK) and the Academy of Medicine, Singapore. She completed additional specialist training in medical oncology at NCCS and was selected for the competitive AACR/ASCO Clinical Cancer Research Workshop in the United States. She subsequently undertook a research fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco, where she contributed to clinical trials and research in GI cancers. She also holds a Graduate Diploma in Healthcare Management and Leadership from Singapore Management University.

Throughout her career, Dr Choo has played a role in developing Singapore’s oncology research programmes. She spearheaded the establishment of the Experimental Cancer Therapeutics Unit, which became a cornerstone for early-phase oncology drug development in Singapore. She also served as Co-Director of the Comprehensive Liver Cancer Clinic, Deputy Head of the Department of Clinical Trials and Epidemiological Sciences, and later Chair of the NCCS Clinical Trials Steering Committee, guiding scientific priorities and fostering a culture of innovation in clinical research. She helped establish the NCCS Gastrointestinal Cancer Database and was appointed as Adjunct Principal Investigator at the SingHealth Investigational Medicine Unit.

Dr Choo has contributed to many multinational cancer trials and earned competitive funding from agencies such as the National Medical Research Council and the Economic Development Board, both as principal investigator and co-investigator for research on gastrointestinal cancers and immune-oncology. She now continues to contribute to Singapore’s research landscape as Deputy Chair of the SingHealth Central Institutional Review Board, overseeing oncology trials across the SingHealth network.

Dr Choo’s academic footprint spans high-impact journals including The Lancet, Nature Genetics, Journal of Clinical Oncology, Annals of Oncology and Cancer Discovery. She is frequently invited to speak at international conferences and has helped shape clinical practice guidelines for liver and pancreatic cancers in the Asia-Pacific region. Her publications can be seen here: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=choo+su+pin&filter=datesearch.y_10

A committed educator, Dr Choo is an Adjunct Associate Professor with the SingHealth Duke-NUS Oncology Academic Clinical Programme at Duke-NUS Medical School, and has previously held an adjunct appointment with the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine. She remains deeply engaged in the training of oncology trainees and specialists, fostering the next generation of leaders in GI cancer care. Dr Choo has also been heavily involved in the organisation of major oncology conferences in the region

Within professional organisations, she holds prominent positions, including Censor-in-Chief of the Academy of Medicine, Singapore, and Honorary Secretary of the Chapter of Medical Oncology. She was the first female President of the Singapore Society of Oncology (SSO) and is a founding member of the SSO Cancer Immunotherapy Consortium.

Internationally, Dr Choo has served on advisory boards for pharmaceutical companies driving GI cancer drug development. She is a current faculty member in the European Society of Medical Oncology ( Lower GI track) which is involved in advanced oncology education and fostering global networks for cancer care, education and research. She also sits on the ESMO Women for Oncology Committee, where she advocates strongly for gender equity in the oncology profession. Dr Choo’s dream is for more equitable access to best cancer care across the globe especially in the ASEAN region

In Singapore, she volunteers her time as a Council Member of the Singapore Cancer Society where she chairs both the Cancer Research and the Community Partnership Committees. Thus, playing her part to help the society to fulfill its mission to reduce the impact of cancer and support patients and families.

Her contributions to clinical service and public health have been recognised with honours including the Gold Excellence Service Award and the National COVID-19 Award