August 2009 World-Renowned Irish Surgeon to Deliver Sir Peter Freyer Memorial Lecture

NUI Galway will host Ireland's largest surgical conference, the 34th Sir Peter Freyer Memorial Lecture & Surgical Symposium, from 4-5 September 2009. Dr Patrick Gullane, Wharton Chair in Head and Neck Surgery at Toronto's Princess Margaret Hospital, will deliver the Memorial Lecture at 5pm on the first day of the conference. The annual event provides a platform for healthcare professionals to present their research and clinical work and allows for the merging of both scientific and clinical information. It is named in memory of the Galway-born surgeon, Sir Peter Freyer, who performed the first successful surgical operation to remove an enlarged prostate in 1900. Commenting on the upcoming lecture, Professor of Surgery at NUI Galway, Michael Kerin, said: "We are honoured to have Dr Gullane here this year to deliver the Memorial lecture. Although his reputation is international, we know him as an Irishman and a graduate of our own institution here at Galway. Dr Gullane has since embarked on a career in otolaryngology - head and neck surgery - and is recognised globally as a leader in his field. As he also acts as Professor and Chair to the Department of Otolaryngology in the University of Toronto, we look forward to his practical, theoretical and research-led insights". On the second day of the Surgical Symposium, Saturday, 5 September, Professor Arnold Hill will present the State of the Art Lecture entitled 'Breast Cancer and the Cancer Strategy - Past, Present and Future'. Arnold Hill is Professor and Chairman of Surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Beaumont Hospital. His research interests focus on resistance to current therapies in the treatment of breast cancer. The Sir Peter Freyer Memorial Lecture & Surgical Symposium is hosted by NUI Galway's Professor Michael Kerin and Mr Oliver McAnena. For further information on event, please contact Grace Clarke at 091 524390 or grace.clarke@nuigalway.ie. -ends-