Meet A/Prof Jun Yang, endocrinologist and clinician-scientist at Hudson Institute of Medical Research, Monash University and Monash Health. Jun will also be a panellist at the upcoming Life as a clinician-scientist Victoria event hosted by AAHMS. Here she talks about her passion for improving care for patients with secondary hypertension and treating your career like a stove burner.
What is your current role and how did you get to be there?
I am a clinician-scientist and Head of the Endocrine Hypertension Research Group at the Hudson Institute of Medical Research. I completed my medical training (MBBS Hons) and obtained a PhD at Monash University, followed by specialist training in endocrinology at Monash Health. My career path has been shaped by a passion for improving the care of patients with secondary hypertension, particularly primary aldosteronism (the most common hormone cause of high blood pressure). Through national and international collaborations and active mentorship, I’ve helped establish a dedicated research and clinical program to improve the detection and targeted treatment of primary aldosteronism so as to reduce morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs associated with this common but under-recognised disease.
How does your work contribute to the field?
My research focuses on improving the detection and treatment of primary aldosteronism, a common yet underdiagnosed cause of high blood pressure and cardiovascular-renal disease. By developing streamlined screening pathways, engaging in guideline development and leading consumer-informed implementation studies, my work directly improves health outcomes for people living with primary aldosteronism. A major output is our recent study, led by Dr Renata Libianto (a PhD student at the time), showing that proactive screening in primary care increased diagnosis rates for primary aldosteronism from <0.1% to 14%, published in the Medical Journal of Australia.
Our finding, together with others from around the world, informed the updated Endocrine Society Primary Aldosteronism Clinical Practice Guideline, which I had the honour of co-authoring. It also underpins ongoing MRFF-funded trials to support widespread adoption of primary aldosteronism screening in primary care so that affected patients can be detected and treated as early as possible.
What is a project you would love to get off the ground or a skill you would like to develop, if you had the opportunity?
If I had a spare 6 months, I’d love to learn some fancy statistics, especially using R to create stunning, easy-to-understand figures that can bring our data to life. I’d also love to take our primary aldosteronism research to the cloud, so we can connect with other like-minded clinicians and researchers, share high–quality data, and harness machine learning to develop diagnostic algorithms that help doctors diagnose the condition, especially in places where resources are limited.
What are your loves outside of work?
Outside of work, I love spending time with my family, including 3 big boys who keep life lively and grounded. I enjoy the outdoors (walking my dog, hiking, cycling, travelling) and the indoors (cooking and baking, watching movies, trying to get out of escape rooms, playing board games, reading). I’m always up for a new experience, especially if it is physically active.
What is one piece of advice you could pass onto others following their own career in health and medical research sector?
One piece of advice that I was given by a senior clinician academic was to treat your career like a stove burner – keep it gently simmering even during times when you can’t give it your full attention. It’s okay to turn the heat down when life gets busy with family or other responsibilities, but try to keep it going by doing small, manageable things to stay connected. Then, when the time is right, turn up the heat and really let things bubble. I think that’s how I managed to gradually rebuild my research career around 3 young children.