Academic and research
Research and Innovation
Good surgery alone is not enough. Good cancer care is built on strong evidence — and that evidence only exists because surgeons commit to asking hard questions, testing new ideas, and sharing what they learn.
100+
Invited talks and presentations
Top 2%
Stanford/Elsevier Top 2% Scientist
Research focus areas
My research focuses on improving outcomes for people with urological cancers across five key areas: better and earlier cancer diagnostics, novel treatments for bladder cancer, biomarker development, understanding non-muscle invasive bladder cancer more precisely, and optimising recovery following robotic surgery.
This work has been incorporated into international guidelines in urological oncology, and I serve on the editorial boards of BJU International and the Journal of Men’s Health. I am a reviewer for the New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, the BMJ, and European Urology, among others.
Current clinical trials
Study Chair · Current
COBRA Trial
A NIHR-funded phase III multicentre randomised controlled trial evaluating combination chemotherapy versus BCG for high-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. Funded at £3.3M (project period 2025–2031).
NIHR · £3,315,716 · Phase III RCT · ISRCTN92816346
Co-Investigator · Completed
HIVEC-II Trial
Phase II randomised controlled trial of adjuvant intravesical chemohyperthermia versus passive chemotherapy in intermediate-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. Published in European Urology (2022).
Cancer Research UK · Phase II RCT · NCT06768346
Co-Investigator · Completed
BOXIT Trial
Phase III randomised controlled trial evaluating celecoxib in addition to standard treatment for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. Published in European Urology.
Cancer Research UK · Phase III RCT · ISRCTN84681538
Co-Investigator · Completed
DETECT I & II
Prospective multicentre observational study validating the UroMark urinary biomarker assay for bladder cancer detection. A landmark study in non-invasive bladder cancer diagnostics.
Medical Research Council · NCT02676180
Co-Investigator · Completed
HYMN Trial
Phase III randomised controlled trial of radiofrequency-induced thermochemotherapy (RITE) versus second course BCG in BCG-recurrent non-muscle invasive bladder cancer. Published in European Urology (2019).
Cancer Research UK · Phase III RCT · ISRCTN85785327
Peer-reviewed publications
Live feed of my peer-reviewed publications, pulled directly from the NCBI PubMed database and updated automatically as new papers are indexed. Click any title to open it on PubMed.
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Book chapters
Clinical Features and Diagnosis of Bladder Cancer — Urinary Markers, Endoscopy, Imaging, and the Role of the Multidisciplinary Team
Rahman S, Jalfon M, Ghali F, Tan WS. Oxford Textbook of Genitourinary Cancer, 1st ed. Eds. Pang K, Protheroe A, Muneer A. Oxford University Press, Oxford. In press
Rapidly Growing, High Volume, Low-Grade Ta Tumor
Tan WS, Kamat AM. Management of Bladder Cancer: A Comprehensive Text with Clinical Scenarios, 2nd ed. Eds. Konety B, Chang S, Porten S. Springer, New York. In press
Male Robotic Cystectomy with Nerve-Sparing Technique
Tan WS, Ta A, Sridhar A, Kelly JD. Robotic Urology, 4th ed. Eds. Hubert J, Wiklund P. Springer, New York.
Intracorporeal Neobladder — UCLH Experience
Weyne E, Tan WS, Kelly JD, Sridhar A. Robotic Urology Surgery. Ed. Patel V. Springer, New York.
Male Robotic Cystectomy
Tan WS, Sridhar A, Kelly JD. Robotic Urology, 3rd ed. Eds. Hubert J, Wiklund P. Springer, New York.
Management of Hematuria in Patients with Prostate Cancer
Lamb BW, Li CY, Tan WS, Green JSA. Hematuria — Etiology, Management and Long-Term Prognosis. Eds. Vasdev N, Boustead G. Nova Books, New York.