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ProfessorJonathan Clark

Lang Walker Family Foundation Professor in Head and Neck Cancer Reconstructive Surgery (Conjoint)

Faculty of Medicine and Health

Orcid identifier0000-0003-1209-772X (opens in a new tab)⁠
  • Lang Walker Family Foundation Professor in Head and Neck Cancer Reconstructive Surgery (Conjoint)
    Faculty of Medicine and Health

RESEARCH INTERESTs

  • Advanced skin cancer: Internationally recognised in the field of metastatic cutaneous SCC (cSCC) with the largest metastatic cSCC database in the world and many practice-changing publications. Recent research has focused on multiomic predictors of disease progression.

 

  • Oral cancer: Led several landmark papers on prognostication in oral cancer through the International Collaboration of Outcome Research (ICOR) that led to the inclusion of depth of invasion in AJCC 8 and defined the international benchmarks for nodal yield in oral cancer. In 2022, Professor Clark established the NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence for Applied Innovations in Oral Cancer. Recent research has focused on the rising incidence of tongue cancer in young females, the genetic differences underlying this and chemotherapy and radiotherapy sensitivity of PDCC, PDX, and bio printed replicates.

 

  • Advanced Reconstructive Techniques and 3D-printing: Professor Clark has published extensively on innovative facial reconstructive techniques and the development of new medical device technology for facial paralysis, jaw reconstruction and trismus therapy. He established the Integrated Prosthetics and Reconstruction (IPR) program at COBL. IPR combines a clinical reconstructive service with a point of care digital planning and manufacturing facility for virtual surgical planning (VSP), and a linked translational research program (T0 – T4) with the largest jaw reconstruction database in Australia. The database prospectively records patient outcome and functional data, DICOM data from preoperative and postoperative CT scans, and quality of life data.  The IPR laboratory has a dedicated design engineer, quality managers, dental rehabilitation team, and collaborates closely with the Biomedical Innovation Hub at COBL, Bioengineering at the University of Sydney, and the Intelligent Polymer Research Institute (IPRI) and ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES) at the University of Wollongong. The program also has strong industry support from Materialise and KLS Martin.

FUNDED RESEARCH

  • GRANT
    Advancing Patient Reported Outcomes in Long-Term Health Technology Assessment of Biocompatible Implantable Devices (APRO-BID)
    Department of Health and Aged Care (Federal - administered by NHMRC)1 Jun 2026
    People funded by this grant:
  • GRANT
    Rewarding Research 2024
    Faculty of Medicine and Health1 Jan 2024
    People funded by this grant:
    • Clark J
  • GRANT
    Smart metamaterials based skull replacement implants to improve electrical brain interfaces enabled by additive manufacturing, electrical impedance tomography and machine learning
    Office of Global Engagement1 Jan 2023
    People funded by this grant:
  • GRANT
    The Centre of Research Excellence for Applied Innovations in Oral Cancer
    National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)1 Jan 2023
    People funded by this grant:
  • GRANT
    A Head and Neck Cancer Biobank for Discovery and Development of Novel Head and Neck Cancer Biomarkers and Therapies
    NSW Health1 Jan 2022
    People funded by this grant:
  • GRANT
    Reducing the Morbidity of Head and Neck Cancer Treatment
    Cancer Institute NSW1 Feb 2021
    People funded by this grant:
  • GRANT
    Bionic Lid Implant for Natural Closure BLINC
    National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)1 Jan 2021
    People funded by this grant: