Rate My Professor Harold Neal

Dr. Harold Neal earned his PhD in 2003 from the Department of Pathology and Biomedical Science at the University of Otago, Christchurch. His doctoral thesis, titled "Crescentic Glomerulonephritis: Associations of Eosinophils and Transforming Growth Factors," was supervised by Robin Fraser and examined pathological associations in kidney disease involving eosinophils and growth factors. As a staff member affiliated with the University of Otago Christchurch campus, Neal was listed in the university's staff directory as Dr. Harold Neal in Anatomical Pathology, with contact details including a direct dial number (+64 3 364 0343) based at Christchurch facilities. His professional association extended to Canterbury Health Laboratories, where he served in roles including Quality Control Manager.

In his career, Neal advanced to the position of Scientific Advisor for the National Cervical Screening Programme (NCSP) at the Ministry of Health in Christchurch. His research specializations encompassed cervical cancer screening, human papillomavirus (HPV) epidemiology, cancer prevention, and mass screening strategies. Key publications co-authored by Neal include "The combined impact of implementing HPV immunisation and primary HPV screening in New Zealand: Transitional and long-term benefits, costs and resource utilisation implications" (2019), which modeled programme outcomes; "Effectiveness Modelling and Economic Evaluation of Primary HPV Screening for Cervical Cancer Prevention in New Zealand" (2016); "Pre-vaccination type-specific HPV prevalence in confirmed cervical high grade lesions in the Māori and non-Māori populations in New Zealand" (2015); "Type-specific oncogenic human papillomavirus infection in high grade cervical disease in New Zealand" (2013); "Monitoring the performance of New Zealand's National Cervical Screening Programme through data linkage" (2009); "A randomised comparison of SurePath liquid-based cytology and conventional smear cytology in a colposcopy clinic setting" (2008); and "The estimation of mean nuclear volume in the diagnosis of breast carcinoma" (1992). Neal provided expert advice for additional studies, such as determinants of inequalities in cervical cancer stage at diagnosis (2010) and nuclear factor κB activation in pulmonary leukocytes (2005). He also held positions such as Chairman of the NZ Medical Laboratory Technologists Board. Now retired, Neal's work has contributed to pathology advancements and informed cervical screening policies in New Zealand.