Karen Dwyer

Professor Karen Dwyer is Professor of Nephrology in the Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences at the University of Melbourne, and Director of Nephrology and Kidney Care Services at The Royal Melbourne Hospital. She earned her MBBS from the University of Melbourne in 1994, completed physician training becoming a FRACP in 2001, obtained her PhD in xenotransplantation through St Vincent’s Hospital and the University of Melbourne in 2004, undertook a postdoctoral fellowship in Transplant Immunology at Harvard University, and recently completed a Fellowship in Lifestyle Medicine with the Australasian Society of Lifestyle Medicine in 2020. With over 20 years of clinical experience as a nephrologist across public and private sectors in metropolitan and regional Australia, she led the medical team for Australia’s first and only hand transplant procedure in 2011. Previously, she served as Deputy Head and Acting Dean of the School of Medicine at Deakin University, and as Clinical Director at Kidney Health Australia. She leads the Royal Melbourne Hospital Department of Nephrology, focusing research on molecular and cellular mechanisms of kidney disease, clinical trials in transplantation and genetic kidney conditions, and health services research to improve care quality and patient self-management.

Dwyer’s research specializations include purinergic signalling in kidney transplantation and ischaemia-reperfusion injury, epigenetics, metabolomics and gut microbiome in diabetic kidney disease, artificial intelligence for predicting chronic kidney disease progression, metabolic health and lifestyle interventions, and novel healthcare delivery models such as shared medical appointments. She has authored more than 120 peer-reviewed publications and supervised numerous higher degree by research students to completion. Her contributions to transplantation and purinergic signalling earned her the Inaugural Burnstock Oration Prize, the Women in Transplantation Leader in Transplantation Award from the International Transplantation Society, and the Ian McKenzie Prize for Outstanding Contribution to Transplantation. A leader in gender equity, she initiated constitutional changes in the Transplantation Society of Australia and New Zealand, served as Oceania Councillor for the International Transplantation Society, and holds positions on the International Women in Transplantation and Education Committees, enhancing influence in clinical nephrology, transplant immunology, and medical education.

Professional Email: karen.dwyer@mh.org.au