Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
David W. Kissane, MD is an academic psychiatrist, psycho-oncology researcher and author. He is currently the Head of Psychiatry for Monash University in Australia, recently the Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York and previously the Foundation Chair of Palliative Medicine at the University of Melbourne.
His academic interests include group, couples and family psychotherapy trials, communication skills training, studies of existential distress, and the ethics of end-of-life care. He developed a cognitive-existential model of group therapy for women with early stage breast cancer, which ameliorated fear of recurrence, and his trial of supportive-expressive group therapy for advanced breast cancer showed the prevention of depression alongside improved quality of life. He is best known for his model of family therapy delivered to andlsquo;at risk' families during palliative care, which prevents complicated grief and depression in bereavement. His work on demoralization as a variation of depression in the medically ill has preceded interventions to promote meaning-based coping.
At MSKCC, Prof Kissane established a Communication Skills Training and Research Laboratory, which developed an applied curriculum for oncology, training over 700 clinicians. His books include the Handbook of Communication in Oncology and Palliative Care with Oxford University Press, Handbook of Psychotherapy in Cancer Care with Wiley-Blackwell, Cancer and Depression for the World Psychiatric Association and Family Focused Grief Therapy with Open University Press. Prof. Kissane was awarded the Jimmie C. Holland Chair in Psycho-oncology at MSKCC and was recognized by the International Psycho-Oncology Society in 2008 with their Arthur Sutherland Award for lifetime achievement.
Clinical activities
2003-2012
Attending Psychiatrist, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Memorial Hospital, New York, NY
Liaison attachments with Breast, Head and Neck and Gynecologic Disease Management Teams. Outpatient clinics twice weekly. Inpatient consultation and Psychiatry Fellow Supervision once weekly.
1998 - 2003
Development of a Psycho-oncology Service at St. Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Australia; 10% effort. Conduct of weekly outpatient and inpatient consultation-liaison service to the oncology unit and hospice inpatients.
1996 - 2003
Monthly supervision of psycho-social services at Melbourne Citymission and Eastern Palliative Care, community-based programs.
1996 - 2003
Provision of a consultation-liaison service to Caritas Christi Hospice at its Kew and Fitzroy Campuses
1996 - 2003
Weekly supervision of Senior Registrar training in Psychiatry, Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute.
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Research area keywords
- psycho-oncology
- palliative care
- psychotherapy trials
- family/couples/group therapy
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Supplemental Jejunal feeding to Improve Quality of Life (SuperQoL)
Croagh, D. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Haines, T. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Furness, K. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Hanna, L. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Carey, S. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Huggins, K. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Kissane, D. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Pilgrim, C. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Metz, A. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Lundy, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)), De Boo, D. W. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Franco, M. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Zalcberg, J. (Associate Investigator (AI)), Dodson, T. (Associate Investigator (AI)), Ryan, M. C. (Associate Investigator (AI)) & Sussex, B. (Associate Investigator (AI))
Department of Health and Aged Care (Australia)
1/03/23 → 28/02/27
Project: Research
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Development of a diagnostic interview to assess psychological adjustment and demoralisation in advanced cancer patients in palliative care
Bobevski, I. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Kissane, D. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Burke, A. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Michael, N. (Chief Investigator (CI))
Project: Research
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Increasing service capacity to address patient needs through innovative shared care models: A pilot model for cancer-related depression
Kissane, D. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Poon, P. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Richardson, G. E. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Wong, Z. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Sherwell, S. (Chief Investigator (CI))
1/09/18 → 31/08/19
Project: Other
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Refinement and Re-validation of the demoralisation scale.
Kissane, D. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Clarke, D. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Fischer, J. (Chief Investigator (CI)) & Franco, M. (Partner Investigator (PI))
Calvary Health Care Bethlehem, Monash University – Internal University Contribution, Monash Health
1/01/13 → 31/12/13
Project: Research
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Communication skills training for oncology health care professionals working with culturally and linguistically diverse patients
Kissane, D. (Primary Chief Investigator (PCI)), Butow, P. N. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Girgis, A. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Hale, S. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Meiser, B. (Chief Investigator (CI)), Aranda, S. K. (Partner Investigator (PI)), Goldstein, D. P. (Partner Investigator (PI)), Perry, A. (Partner Investigator (PI)) & Sargeant, C. (Partner Investigator (PI))
Australian Research Council (ARC)
1/07/12 → 30/06/15
Project: Research
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An Online Survey of Australian Medical Students’ Perspectives on Spiritual History Taking and Spiritual Care
Wenham, J., Best, M. & Kissane, D. W., Feb 2024, In: Journal of Religion and Health. 63, 1, p. 257–273 17 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access -
Cohort profile of FALCON: a prospective nationwide cohort of families with minor children who have lost a parent in Denmark in 2019–2021
Høeg, B. L., Guldin, M. B., Karlsen, R. V., Løppenthin, K. B., Kissane, D., Dalton, S. O. & Bidstrup, P. E., 2024, In: Death Studies. 48, 3, p. 228–237 11 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
2 Citations (Scopus) -
Education and assessment of psycho-existential symptoms to prevent suicidality in cancer care
Kissane, D. W., Feb 2024, In: Psycho-Oncology. 33, 2, 4 p., e5519.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment / Debate › Other › peer-review
3 Citations (Scopus) -
Anxiety and depression in adult cancer patients: ESMO Clinical Practice Guideline †
Grassi, L., Caruso, R., Riba, M. B., Lloyd-Williams, M., Kissane, D., Rodin, G., McFarland, D., Campos-Ródenas, R., Zachariae, R., Santini, D., Ripamonti, C. I. & on behalf of the ESMO Guidelines Committee, Apr 2023, In: ESMO Open. 8, 2, 14 p., 101155.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Other › peer-review
Open Access84 Citations (Scopus) -
Demoralization and spirituality in oncology: an integrative systematic review
Garcia, A. C. M., Schneiders, M., da Mota, K. S., da Conceição, V. M. & Kissane, D. W., May 2023, In: Supportive Care in Cancer. 31, 5, 14 p., 259.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review Article › Research › peer-review
11 Citations (Scopus)