Pathologists
A/Prof. Andrew Ryan
MBBS (Hons), FRCPA
A/Prof. Andrew Ryan graduated from Monash University (Hons.) in 1996. After gaining valuable clinical experience, he undertook Anatomical Pathology training at Monash Medical Centre and the Alfred Hospital, before joining TissuPath.
Andrew has interest and expertise in urological, gastrointestinal, ENT and skin pathology, and is involved in prostate, kidney, gastro, and melanoma research.
Andrew is involved in numerous clinical multidisciplinary team meetings and is a member of the Pan Prostate Cancer Group of the International Cancer Genome Consortium, and the Melbourne Urological Research Alliance (MURAL). He holds an adjunct clinical Associate Professor position in the Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, Faculty of School of Medicine and Nursing at Monash University, and works closely with the Prostate Cancer Research Group. He is an associated member of the International Society of Urological Pathologists (ISUP) and Genitourinary Pathology Society (GUPS).
Outside of TissuPath, Andrew dedicates time to his family, his beloved garden, reading, and developing his amateur guitar and piano skills.
Dr. Sam Norden
MBBS (Hons), FRCPA
Dr. Sam Norden is a graduate of the University of Melbourne. He trained as an anatomical pathologist in Victoria at the Geelong, Austin, and St. Vincent’s Hospitals.
Following training Sam joined Tissupath, working closely with A/Prof. John Pedersen. Sam’s areas of interest and expertise include uropathology, neoplastic skin pathology, and gastrointestinal pathology.
Dr. Tim Nottle
MBBS, FRCPA
Dr. Tim Nottle trained in histopathology at the Geelong and Box Hill Hospitals after graduating from the University of Melbourne. He has undertaken specialist training in urological pathology under the guidance of renowned experts A/Prof. John Pedersen and Prof. Ronnie Cohen.
His other major interests include breast and gastrointestinal pathology. Tim is a mad Carlton fan, online gamer and long-distance runner.
Dr. Vivek Rathi
MD, MHSc, FRCPA
Dr. Vivek Rathi is an Anatomical Pathologist and RCPA certified Molecular Pathologist. After completing his junior medical officer years at Eastern Health and Monash Health, Vivek joined Anatomical Pathology registrar training in 2007 and rotated through the Austin Hospital and The Royal Melbourne Hospital for the next five years.
After obtaining his RCPA Fellowship in 2012, Vivek worked as a Staff Specialist at St. Vincent’s Hospital up to 2020. Besides his role as an Anatomical Pathologist, Vivek was instrumental in establishing and running a clinical genomics laboratory within the Anatomical Pathology Department at St. Vincent’s. He then joined Monash Health in 2020 as the Unit Head of the Department of Genomics before joining TissuPath in 2022.
Dr. Helene Yilmaz
MBBS, BSC(MED), MPH, FRCPA
Dr. Helene Yilmaz is a graduate of the University of NSW and a fellow of the RCPA. Helene has been working as a consultant anatomical pathologist since 2013 with a major interest in uropathology.
Following training, Helene completed a Genitourinary Pathology Preceptorship at Cleveland Clinic (USA) in 2017, and has worked at Douglass Hanly Moir and Histopath, both based in Sydney.
Dr. Behzad Faghani
md, frcpa
Dr. Behzad Faghani graduated from Golestan University of Medical Sciences (Iran) in 2004. He began specialist training in pathology at Tehran University of Medical Sciences (Iran) in 2006 and obtained his qualification in 2010. Behzad practiced as a pathologist in public hospitals and private laboratories – including his own laboratory – in Iran from 2010 to 2019.
Behzad moved to Darwin in 2019 to undertake training in anatomical pathology and obtained his fellowship from the RCPA in 2022. He later joined Launceston General Hospital and worked as a staff specialist, participating in all aspects of histopathology and cytology until he joined TissuPath in 2023. Behzad’s major interests include breast pathology, uropathology, and GI pathology.
Dr. Shaun Brown
MBBS, BMEDSCI, FRCPA
Dr. Shaun Brown graduated from the University of Melbourne in 2006. Shaun trained in histopathology at the Austin Hospital, Box Hill Hospital, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, and the Royal Melbourne Hospital. Since completing his training he has worked as consultant histopathologist in Adelaide, Ballarat Base Hospital, St Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne, and Canberra Hospital before initially joining TissuPath mid-2022. From 2023 to 2024 Shaun took up a position as a locum anatomical pathologist at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre for one year, and there he honed his diagnostic skills across multiple specialty areas including lower gastrointestinal, upper gastrointestinal and hepatobiliary, neuroendocrine tumour pathology, uropathology and soft tissue pathology. His time at MacCallum included being part of a high-volume tertiary referral pathology practice, as well as taking lead responsibility for lower gastrointestinal and uropathological reporting and referrals. While at Peter MacCallum Shaun also gained invaluable experience in utilising various specialised molecular techniques to assist with diagnosis and prognosis, and he looks forward to applying these skills with TissuPath’s partner molecular pathology laboratory, LifeStrands Genomics Australia, as part of his practice.
Shaun reports across a wide range of histopathology areas and has a special interest in breast, urological, lymphoma, gastrointestinal and soft tissue pathology. When away from pathology, Shaun enjoys distance running, swimming, and hiking, and is a passionate supporter of Geelong Football Club.
Dr. Richard Standish
MBBS, frcPath (uk), affiliate rcpa
Dr. Richard Standish is an MBBS graduate of the University of Melbourne and trained as an anatomical pathologist at the Royal Free Hospital in London (UK), where he also enjoyed student teaching and undertook research into the image analysis measurement of liver fibrosis.
Following his return to Australia, Richard worked as a pathologist in Geelong and at the Austin Hospital and was the inaugural Coordinator of Pathology Studies in the School of Medicine at Deakin University, before joining TissuPath in 2023.
His major areas of interest are GI and liver pathology.
Richard is currently an Affiliate Associate Professor in the School of Medicine at Deakin University, and has been a supervisor of pathology trainees and standard setter for the RCPA Basic Pathological Sciences examination. He has also been a member of various committees, the Chair of the RCPA QAP Gastrointestinal Module Committee, and the President of the Australasian Gastrointestinal Pathology Society.
Away from work, Richard enjoys family, cooking, choral singing, and skiing – volunteering as a guide and trainer in adaptive snowsports with Disabled Wintersport Australia.