Ritcha Saxena, MD

Self-care and empathy: wonder drugs!My take on the burning epidemic among med students #burnout #Medtwitter #MedEd Thanks to @pathologistmag

Thrilled to be featured in the “Best of 2021" list! Such a pleasant event in a year that has otherwise been a roller coaster. Remembering 2020 that also ended on a high note with Osmosis Raise the Line Award for Excellence in Teaching So grateful to @Instapathbio and my students!

@ProfRAScolyer Even in the toughest battles, your courage and humor inspire. Hope walks beside you, lighting the way. Sending wishes for peace, strength, and gentle days surrounded by care!

It’s been a busy (& tough at times) past 3 weeks. My brain tumour continues to grow & now is involving both left & right sides of my brain. A right side focus is both hotter and bigger so I have been receiving bilateral radiotherapy for 3 weeks (on Monday to Friday). I’m a bit “zonked” but otherwise feeling fine. The team tells me that it could take a few weeks to recover from (good luck holding me back 😜)! Special thanks for the many amazing people who, with great passion, are providing me & my close family and friends with excellent care. My medical team continue to provide fantastic care including Neuro-oncologist Helen Wheeler, Radiation Oncologist Michael Back, Clinical Care Neuro-oncology Coordinator Marina Kastelan and Neuro-radiologist Jamie Drummond. Both Katie & I really appreciate the support we receive from the medical team and our family (son Matt is in the first photo with me) and friends xxxxxooooo!! #glioblastoma #braincancer #Brainstorm @NthSydHealth @COBLH @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni

Check out my basal cell carcinoma sample #pathology reports: kikoxp.com/posts/5093. How I word my BCC reports in real life practice & why. See also my BCC 101 video: youtube.com/watch?v=og6Qyw… #pathologists #pathTwitter #dermpath #dermatology #dermatologia #dermtwitter

@ProfRAScolyer You are incredibly brave and a great example of hope, Prof. Scolyer. Wishing you strength and healing.

Hi everyone. Regular brain scans and various treatments are an ongoing part of life for me. I’m amazed and very thankful I’m still going so well. Thankyou to my wonderful medical team, family, friends and everyone for your support, friendliness and kindness. I really appreciate it! #glioblastoma #braincancer #Brainstorm @NthSydHealth @COBLH @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni

@ProfRAScolyer Congratulations, well deserved!

I was very touched to receive the 2025 Inner West Citizen of the Year award from my local council and other community members in late May. Due to my challenges around this time related to my brain tumour, at times I struggled during my speech. Nevertheless, from the kindness and support of many amazing people, I felt very overwhelmed and grateful. The special community of the Inner West has been Katie and I’s home for over 25 years and we have made many wonderful connections with people in and around our community! #Brainstorm #glioblastoma @MayorDarcy @IWCouncil @AllenAndUnwin @gmaddox @SydneyLHD @NthSydHealth @COBLH @Sydney_Uni

@ProfRAScolyer Wishing you strength and peace. You live each day with quiet brilliance, touching lives in ways you may never fully see. That light matters. Holding your beautiful family in my thoughts, with warmth and hope.

It sure is amazing to be back out there participating and enjoying life. A month or so ago, I had some tough times with recurrent brain tumour and additional challenges. These were associated with swelling of my brain which can cause changes in how I am functioning. However, now I am feeling much better and loving spending time with my wonderful family & friends. #glioblastoma #braintumour

@ProfRAScolyer What a fantastic achievement! 250 Parkruns is no small feat. You’ve shown such dedication, and it’s genuinely inspiring. I hope you’re soaking in all the love and pride around you today, you’ve earned every bit of it. Massive congratulations!

Today I completed my 250th Parkrun down at the Greenway. I feel so touched at how many people showed up to demonstrate their support and kindness. Parkrun is such an important staple in my week and a fantastic, volunteer-run organisation who make it easy and accessible for anyone to get out and about and join the community. Thank you to everyone who participated, especially all the incredible volunteers, as well as my friends and family who have supported me on this incredible journey. @parkrunAU

@ProfRAScolyer I’ve long admired your brilliance and dedication. Your courage and love for life in the face of adversity inspire deeply. You continue to teach us through the strength of your spirit. Wishing you the best of health, and may you enjoy every moment with love, peace, and meaning.

A recent MRI scan showed, in the left side of my brain, further progress of my glioblastoma (IDH wild-type, etc.) and related adjacent reactive changes. Here is a couple of pictures. Whilst this may not be the best direction to be heading with my changes, amazingly (to me) I still seem keen to keep living, loving and having fun, whenever possible. I feel like there are quite a few people on my team (including my family & friends) and they make me happy & proud! #Brainstorm #glioblastoma @AllenAndUnwin @gmaddox @SydneyLHD @NthSydHealth @COBLH @Sydney_Uni

@ProfRAScolyer Your strength speaks louder than words and uplifts everyone around you. Please know that you are held in kind thoughts, surrounded by hope, and supported with every heartfelt wish for healing and peace.

In May 2023, a glioblastoma (GBM) in my brain was diagnosed following a seizure then brain scans and surgery. A recent MRI brain scan shows the recurrent tumour is still there and it's getting tougher to treat. But I’m not ready to give up on it yet. I feel lucky to have a team of family, friends & medical team supporting me. Thanks everyone for your support. #Brainstorm #glioblastoma @AllenAndUnwin @gmaddox @SydneyLHD @NthSydHealth @COBLH @Sydney_Uni

Your groundbreaking contributions to melanoma research and classification have transformed care for countless patients worldwide. Following your courageous journey through glioblastoma has been both inspiring and humbling.Immensely proud of your legacy as a visionary pathologist and truly great man.

I am incredibly proud of my contributions to the World Health Organisation (WHO) over more than 20 years! Whilst in 2004, I was thrilled to be able to share our knowledge of a rare subtype of melanoma (that is now treated differently), as a chapter writer (3rd edition), my subsequent roles got way harder but also more critical. I was appointed as a senior editor on the last 2 editions (4th & 5th editions over >10 years) of these life changing skin cancer, including diagnosis, books. It has been incredibly tough and challenging work at times but something that makes me and the other individuals involved extremely proud. Ultimately it undoubtedly saves millions of lives worldwide and improves outcomes worldwide! Many more than a million people are diagnosed with various skin tumours each year! The WHO Classification of Skin Tumours (centred/based in Lyon, France) plays a critically important role for all people worldwide to ensure they get the correct diagnosis (& subsequently correct treatment & outcomes). The WHO brings together >100 worldwide experts representing every continent to discuss hundreds of conditions and until agreement is reached. This pushes the field forward by recognising, sub-classifying and carefully defining categories of cancer that are needed to identify new cancers, subcategories & how to recognise every tumour subtype. I was initially invited to contribute to WHO in 2004 to join my Sydney colleagues, including Stan McCarthy and Kerry Crotty, to write a very special chapter on “desmoplastic melanoma”, a fairly rare type of melanoma but relatively more commoner in Australia. But then things changes! In about 2013, I was invited with an opportunity to become a senior editor (there was 4 of us worldwide). This meant that with only a very small number people, I was invited to lead the 4th & 5th of the WHO Classification of Skin Tumours (the 5th edition is finalised & out but not the hard copy!). It created an enormous amount of committed, hardwork over years but would literally change many skin diseases (and their treatment). Whilst it has taken me many thousands of hours, I couldn’t be prouder of the results and outcomes and their effects on people worldwide! WHO’s committed hard work has been amazing. I could not be prouder of my contributions! Thank you Dr Ian Cree and your team for your support, commitment and hardwork. I was very touched by you and your team’s incredibly kind comments that I received recently! @WHO @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni @AllenAndUnwin @gmaddox #skintumour #Brainstorm #glioblastoma

@earthcurated @CrispeThe

Post a picture YOU took. Just a pic. No description.

I'm deeply sorry to hear about this , but I’m also truly moved by your resilience and the incredible contributions you've made to cancer research. Your courage in facing this challenge while advancing science for others is nothing short of inspiring. Wishing you strength, comfort, and the support of those who care for you. Your work and spirit will leave a lasting impact.

Unfortunately there is a larger volume of quickly growing brain cancer (glioblastoma, IDH WT, unmethylated etc) in my left brain. The prognosis is poor. Whilst some of my recurrent tumour was removed last week, some of it couldn’t be because of its site. While the neoadjuvant triple doses of immunotherapy &/or anticancer vaccination I received may have made a difference in my brain tumour & survival, more work needs to be done in a clinical trial to prove this. Either way, I am proud of the data produced after treatment with neoadjuvant immunotherapy (and recently published in the prestigious journal Nature Medicine) which I hope will make a difference for others. I greatly appreciate the support of all my family, friends & colleagues who have been looking after me so well & the incredible research that has been performed. I hope the latter will change the field & patient outcomes in the not too distant future. @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni @NthSydHealth @COBLH @AllenAndUnwin @gmaddox @Channel9 @AllisonLangdon @smh @Dr_Brindha #glioblastoma

@ProfRAScolyer Take care, sending you good vibes and prayers!

Unfortunately my recent scans show some new changes which could be an effect of my previous treatment or recurrent brain tumour. I might need surgery in a few weeks time to obtain some tissue so the smart neuropathology team can help to figure this out (which I know isn’t always easy)! @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni @NthSydHealth #Brainstorm #glioblastoma

@ProfRScolyerMIA That’s wonderful to hear, I’m delighted!

Still no sign of recurrence of my glioblastoma on the latest MRI scan. I couldn’t be happier!! It’s 18 months today since my brain tumour came to light. Thank you to all those who have been part of the medical & scientific teams involved in my treatment and care and scientific analysis of my tumour. @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni @AllenAndUnwin @gmaddox @ausoftheyear #Brainstorm

@ProfRScolyerMIA Congratulations!!

I am very excited to be speaking at the Sydney Opera House on Sunday 17th November 2024 at 4pm in the Joan Sutherland theatre! I’ll talk about my life and my team’s work in the melanoma field and discuss the journey I have been on since I was diagnosed with a supposedly incurable brain cancer in May 2023. It’s one of the few events I’ll be doing around my new memoir, Brainstorm, that I’ve written with Garry Maddox. It is planned to be released in late October and will be available in bookstores. You can also purchase it online. You can book tickets to the Sydney Opera House event now through their website: sydneyoperahouse.com/talks-and-idea… (sydneyoperahouse.com/talks-and-idea…)   @SydOperaHouse @AllenAndUnwin @ausoftheyear @MelanomaAus @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni @gmaddox @smh #glioblastoma #melanoma

@ProfRScolyerMIA Speedy recovery!!

Last week, I had an episode where I woke up lying on the floor with blood dripping from a 4cm laceration at the back of my head. I’d passed out, strangely with no preceeding symptoms but presumably from another seizure, for the first time since January. On the advice of my brilliant neurologist Dr Kaitlyn Parratt, went to the #RPAH ED where the friendly & efficient Dr James Edwards & his team sorted me out with bloods, ECG & CT brain and closed/repaired my wound. All tests etc clear (thanks Dr Liz Thompson for again expertly interpreting my CT scan) so went home on boosted doses of antiepileptics. Abit zonked but otherwise ok. Thank you so much to the amazing team at RPAH (where I have worked for >26 years) for their kind & friendly care! @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni @KaitlynParratt

@ProfRScolyerMIA @subbie @gmaddox @Dr_Brindha @NthSydHealth @Sydney_Uni @syd_health @CPC_usyd @SydneyResearch @SHPartners @PathologyRCPA Great news!!!

I had brain #MRI scan last Thursday looking for recurrent #glioblastoma (&/or treatment complications). I found out yesterday that there is still no sign of recurrence. I couldn’t be happier!!!!! Thank you to the fabulous team looking after me so well especially my wife Katie & wonderful family! @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni

@ProfRScolyerMIA @DermpathDx @TristanRutland7 @FionaMacPath @CaDxPath @ASDPTweets @JeffGershenwald @JMGardnerMD @Dermpathl @SGottesmanMD @PathologyRCPA Congratulations!!!

I was delighted to co-write a recently released textbook on “Melanocytic Tumors of the Skin” with my dear friend & collaborator of almost 20 years Dr Klaus Busam MD. Klaus has worked in New York City at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) throughout this time & is not only a brilliant #dermatopathologist but a wonderful human being. We are both very committed to sharing the knowledge & experience we have gained through our roles as diagnosticians & researchers at #MSKCC and #RPAH, #MIA & #USyd, respectively to help medical colleagues and ultimately patients. I hope there are many people around the world who will find this textbook very helpful! @kjbusam @MelanomaAus @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni @MSKCancerCenter #dermpath #melanoma

@ProfRScolyerMIA @amenzies9 @MattCarlino @gmaddox @AllenAndUnwin @inespiresilva @HelenRizos @JWilmott38 @CPC_usyd @Dr_Brindha @drsydneychng It's amazing to see you nearing the one-year milestone, You truly inspire!!!

On Monday, I had further experimental treatment for my “brain cancer” #glioblastoma. This was delayed because there had been concerns about some of my blood test results. As a consequence, until recently, I hadn’t been exercising. But I am continuing to feel well. Thank you @ProfGLongMIA & other members of @MelanomaAus & the neuro-oncology team for facilitating my treatments. I will be having another MRI brain scan next Thursday 9th May. Hard to believe it’s nearly the one year anniversary since my initial seizure in #Poland & my #glioblastoma was discovered. Thank you to my wonderful wife Katie & my family, friends, colleagues & indeed everyone for all the incredible support I’ve been receiving - I am truly grateful! @MelanomaAus @SydneyLHD @Sydney_Uni