Charles Teo
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Charles Teo AM ( zh, 張正賢, s=, t=; born 24 December 1957)''Who's Who in Australia'', ConnectWeb. is an Australian
neurosurgeon Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the medical specialty that focuses on the surgical treatment or rehabilitation of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, ...
.


Early life and education

Teo was born to
Chinese-Singaporean Chinese Singaporeans, Singaporean Chinese or Sino-Singaporeans () are Singaporeans of Han Chinese ancestry. Chinese Singaporeans constitute 75.9% of the Singaporean resident population according to the official census, making them the large ...
parents who immigrated to Australia. He attended
The Scots College The Scots College is an independent primary and secondary Day school, day and Boarding school, boarding school for boys, predominantly located in , an Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), eastern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is affiliat ...
and the
University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW) is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was established in 1949. The university comprises seven faculties, through which it offers bachelor's, master's and docto ...
, graduating with a
Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (; MBBS, also abbreviated as BM BS, MB ChB, MB BCh, or MB BChir) is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education trad ...
in 1981.


Career

Charlie Teo started in general neurosurgery at
Royal Prince Alfred Hospital The Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (abbreviated RPAH or RPA) is a large teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia, located on Missenden Road in Camperdown. It is a teaching hospital of the Central Clinical School of the Sydney Medical School at the ...
before moving to the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. He completed a fellowship in
Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
,
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, where he became the only Australian neurosurgeon certified by a US medical board. Teo spent almost ten years in the United States where he was an associate professor of neurosurgery and chief of pediatric neurosurgery at the
Arkansas Children's Hospital Arkansas Children's Hospital (ACH) is a pediatric hospital with a Level I trauma center in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is among the largest in the United States, serving infants, children, teens, and young adults from birth to age 21. ACH is affi ...
. He initially avoided neurosurgery, which he found to be a "very unforgiving specialty". He began his career in pediatric surgery before, as he described it, being "thrust into neurosurgery" after being asked to cover the duties of a colleague who had fallen ill. Upon his return to Australia, he was self-appointed as the director of the Centre for Minimally Invasive Neurosurgery which he established at the
Prince of Wales Hospital Prince of Wales Hospital is a regional acute government hospital located in Sha Tin, New Territories in Hong Kong, China. It is also a teaching hospital of the Faculty of Medicine of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). Named after Ki ...
, and is the founder of Cure Brain Cancer Foundation (formerly Cure For Life Foundation), and the founder of the Charlie Teo Foundation. Over the course of his career, Teo developed an international reputation in the field of minimally-invasive (or '
keyhole A lock is a mechanical or electronic fastening device that is released by a physical object (such as a key, keycard, fingerprint, RFID card, security token or coin), by supplying secret information (such as a number or letter permutation or pas ...
') neurosurgery. Teo has been an invited speaker and visiting professor in more than thirty-five countries, associated with institutions such as
Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
,
Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
, Albert Einstein University,
Marburg University The Philipps University of Marburg () is a public research university located in Marburg, Germany. It was founded in 1527 by Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, which makes it one of Germany's oldest universities and the oldest still operating Protes ...
and the
Barrow Neurological Institute Barrow Neurological Institute is the world's largest neurological disease treatment and research institution, and is consistently ranked as one of the best neurosurgical training centers in the United States. Founded in 1962, the main campus is ...
in Phoenix, Arizona. Teo has written more than thirty book chapters and numerous scholarly papers. While still teaching regularly in the US, he also teaches and sponsors the education of neurosurgeons from developing countries, including Peru, Vietnam, Bangladesh, and Romania; and he treats children from developing countries with neurological conditions. Some elements of the media have claimed Teo has worked miracles. Notable patients of Teo include Jane McGrath, Dr Chris O'Brien, and
Stan Zemanek Stan Zemanek (29 May 1947 – 12 July 2007) was an Australian shock jock, radio broadcaster, television presenter, radio producer and author who presented a night-time show on The Macquarie Network station 2UE in Sydney and which was networked ...
. Author Susan Wyndham detailed a story about Teo and the pianist Aaron McMillan, a patient, in her biography, ''Life in his Hands''. Sally White, a patient of Teo's, wrote of her experiences in ''Three Quotes From A Plumber: How a Second Opinion Changed the Life of a Woman with a Brain Tumour''. Teo was featured in several TV programs including the ABC's '' Q&A'', ''Good Medicine'', ''
60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who distinguished it from other news programs by using a unique style o ...
'', ''
Last Chance Surgery ''Last Chance Surgery'' is an Australian factual television series screened on the Seven Network that first screened in 2009. Last Chance Surgery is narrated by doctor and former Australian Medical Association president, Kerryn Phelps. The series ...
'', ''
Australian Story ''Australian Story'' is a national weekly current affairs and documentary style television series which is broadcast on ABC Television (Australian TV network), ABC Television. It is produced specifically by the ABC News and Current Affairs, AB ...
'', ''
Enough Rope ''Enough Rope with Andrew Denton'' (often shortened to ''Enough Rope'') is a television interview show originally broadcast on ABC1 in Australia. The title of the show came from the phrase " give someone enough rope and they'll hang themselves ...
'' and '' Anh's Brush with Fame''. The
Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...
'' Most Trusted Australian' was an annual trust survey, where participants rated their level of trust of a high-profile Australian out of 10. Teo appeared first or in the Top 5 for several years; and was rated most trusted Australian in 2012, 2013, and 2014. In 2011, Teo was appointed a
Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...
for service to medicine as a neurosurgeon through the introduction of minimally invasive techniques, as a researcher, educator and mentor, and through the establishment of the Cure for Life Foundation. Teo gave the 50th Anniversary Errol Solomon Meyers Memorial Lecture at the
University of Queensland The University of Queensland is a Public university, public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six sandstone ...
in August 2007. Teo gave the 2012 Australia Day speech on 23 January 2012.


Legal issues

In May 2019, controversy arose when a prominent Australian
urologist Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and ''-logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary system and the reproductive organs. Org ...
, Professor Henry Woo, commented on the large number of
GoFundMe GoFundMe is an American for-profit crowdfunding platform that allows people to raise money for events ranging from life events such as celebrations and graduations to challenging circumstances like accidents and illnesses. From 2010 to the ...
campaigns requesting considerable sums of money for patients to have surgery done by Teo when Australia's public health system should be performing any required surgery in the public system. Professor Woo also questioned the absence of peer-reviewed evidence that Teo's operative approach was beneficial to patients with incurable brain cancer. In 2021, the NSW Medical Council conducted a special hearing into Teo's behaviours during surgical procedures; and, following investigation, he was prevented from performing any "recurrent malignant intracranial tumour and brain stem tumour surgical procedures" unless he obtained written approval from an independent neurosurgeon, as approved by the NSW Medical Council. Teo was also investigated by the Health Care Complaints Commission. After a lengthy investigation by the commission, Teo appeared before a hearing in September 2022. In July 2023, the Commission found Teo guilty of unsatisfactory professional conduct, for which he was reprimanded. In 2022, it was reported that Teo is performing surgeries in Spain, which is beyond the regulatory powers of the NSW Medical Council. On 23 October 2022, the ''
Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper in ...
'' described how Teo charged families extraordinary amounts of money and gave hope for a cure for ultimately futile operations that have catastrophically injured his patients. The article discussed two cases of operations on children with
Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma Diffuse midline glioma, H3 K27-altered (DMG) is a tumour that arises in midline structures of the brain, most commonly the brainstem, thalamus and spinal cord. When located in the pons it is also known as diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). ...
(DIPG), an inoperable tumour, which, despite Teo's reassurance to their families that these surgeries could cure DIPG, did not provide a cure. In an interview on ''A Current Affair'', Teo sought to justify his interventions. In a podcast with
Mark Bouris Mark Leigh Bouris (born 30 November 1960) is an Australian businessman who is best known as the founder and chairman of Wizard Home Loans, Australia's second largest non-bank mortgage loan, mortgage lender behind Aussie Home Loans. He is now t ...
, Teo would claim that the accusations being levelled against him are from business rivals and personal enemies. During the hearing, it was reported that Teo slapped a patient who was unconscious in front of the patient's family, while Teo downplayed the intensity of the slap, calling it a light tap through a pantomime. Teo's conduct has been criticised by other Australian neurosurgeons. Amidst the controversy, a number of neurosurgeons globally, as well as other medical colleagues, supported Teo. In letters of support to the Health Care Complaints Commission, Professor Yeo Tseng Tsai, head of neurosurgery at
National University Hospital The National University Hospital (NUH) is a tertiary referral hospital and academic medical centre in Singapore, located in Kent Ridge. It is a 1,160-bed tertiary hospital serving more than 670,000 outpatients and 49,000 inpatients and serves ...
Singapore lauded Teo as 'a world class neurosurgeon of the first order'. Professor Paul Gardiner, neurosurgery director at
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center UPMC is an American integrated delivery system, integrated global nonprofit health enterprise that has 100,000 employees, 40 hospitals with more than 8,000 licensed beds, 800 clinical locations including outpatient sites and doctors' offices, a ...
described Teo as 'among a small set of gifted and dedicated surgeons who can offer the most complicated patients a chance where other (neurosurgeons) cannot'. Dr Robert L. Dodd of Stanford School of Medicine affirmed that Teo's 'skill as a surgeon is superb and his surgical outcomes were extraodinary'. Director of Brain Tumor and Skull Base Surgery at Providence Brain and Spine Institute Dr Gore writes in 'unequivocal support of Dr Charlie Teo ... his heightened skills in handling critical neural and vascular structures and differentiating tumor from non-neoplastic tissue put him in a position to perform surgery that many other neurosurgeons are not capable of'. Professor of Neurosurgery Nikolai J Hopf of
University of Mainz The Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz () is a public research university in Mainz, Rhineland Palatinate, Germany. It has been named after the printer Johannes Gutenberg since 1946. it had approximately 32,000 students enrolled in around 100 a ...
, Germany, described Teo as 'one of the most important opinion leaders in the field of glioma surgery... his impact on modern surgical treatment of patients with gliomas and in particular complex gliomas is outstanding...', noting that if Teo's 'registration was suspended, cancelled, or otherwise restricted, patients as well as the Neurosurgical community would lose one of the most skillful glioma surgeons'. In August 2023, Teo and a former patient reached an
out-of-court settlement In law, a settlement is a resolution between disputing parties about a legal case, reached either before or after court action begins. A collective settlement is a settlement of multiple similar legal cases. The term also has other meanings in ...
just prior to a seven-day medical negligence hearing. Teo had operated twice on the patient, who had a grade 3
anaplastic astrocytoma Anaplastic astrocytoma is a rare WHO grade III type of astrocytoma, which is a type of cancer of the brain. In the United States, the annual incidence rate for anaplastic astrocytoma is 0.44 per 100,000 people. Signs and symptoms Initial presenti ...
. The patient subsequently lost movement down one side of his body, as well as having visual and cognitive impairment. He has limited life expectancy, possibly less than a year. Teo denied he had been negligent. In approving judgment for the patient, Supreme Court Justice Richard Cavanagh said "the settlement reflects the top of the range for the plaintiff". In March 2025, Teo agreed to pay an undisclosed settlement amount to the family of a patient who died soon after he operated on her incurable brain tumour. He had previously been found guilty of professional misconduct over the operation in question. Responding to public criticism of his billing practices, Teo claimed in 2025 that he did not charge "more than half" of his patients during his career, including medical staff, police officers, and pensioners. Following the restrictions placed on his surgical practice in Australia, Teo now travels internationally to countries like Spain to mentor other surgeons, guiding them through operations as a non-participating observer.


Personal life

Teo was married to Genevieve Teo (née Agnew); the couple have four daughters. They separated in 2018. Teo is engaged to former international model, Traci Griffiths. Traci Griffiths was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2011. Teo was her treating surgeon. Since 2009, Teo has been a patron of Australian animal welfare group
Voiceless In linguistics, voicelessness is the property of sounds being pronounced without the larynx vibrating. Phonologically, it is a type of phonation, which contrasts with other states of the larynx, but some object that the word phonation implies v ...
.


References


External links


The Centre For Minimally Invasive Neorosurgery

Charles Teo's professional biography

Cure Brain Cancer Foundation
*



UNSWTV profile {{DEFAULTSORT:Teo, Charles 1957 births Australian people of Chinese descent Australian people of Singaporean descent Living people Members of the Order of Australia Australian neurosurgeons People educated at Scots College (Sydney) Medical doctors from Sydney University of New South Wales Medical School alumni