Yazan Abdallah

Summary

Yazan Abdallah (MD, MRCOG, Ph.D)

SUMMARY

• Grew up in Damascus, Syria
• Degree in Medicine (MD) in 2005
• Won the prestigious National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Award and was appointed as an Academic Fellow at Oxford University in 2011
• PhD from Imperial College London (Division of Surgery and Cancer) in 2014
• Trained at London North West Thames Deanery
• Accredited subspecialty programme in Reproductive Medicine in Manchester, the first fully NHS funded IVF unit in the UK
• CCT with dual GMC accreditation in both Obstetrics and Gynaecology as well as Reproductive Medicine and Surgery
• Consultant in Reproductive Medicine and Surgery within the NHS at St Mary’s Hospital, Manchester in 2019
• Honorary Clinical Lecturer at Imperial College London with h-index of 18

RESEARCH OUTPUT

• Over 30 peer reviewed research publications, over 50 international presentations and conference abstracts
• Invited speaker to a number of international conferences
• Led multi-centre research projects in London and collaborated with the Katholieke University Leuven, Belgium, utilising high-technology ultrasound, including 3D and blood flow studies. The work led to practice change in the UK, Europe and internationally 
• Introduced a safer new practice in the early diagnosis of miscarriage in the UK and internationally (the currently adopted RCOG and NICE guidelines)
• Carried out ultrasound studies of the uterus to predict early pregnancy outcome in women with fertility problems before they become pregnant
• Contributed to the work on immune suppression in uterine transplantation in women with infertility.
• Collaborated with the International Ovarian Tumor Analysis (IOTA) group focusing on the use of ultrasound in the diagnosis of ovarian cancer
• Participated in the novel work that led to describing the changes in caesarean scars throughout pregnancy, and related the scar behaviour to the final pregnancy outcome
• Fertility preservation in cancer survivors: authored the first UK wide study to examine the provision of female fertility preservation in cancer patients who are about to have chemotherapy or radiotherapy. This research outcome was well received and it generated remarkable interest across the UK

SKILLS IN MALE AND FEMALE FERTILITY

• Assisted conception (IVF)
• Reproductive endocrinology
• Laparoscopic surgery
• Fertility preservation for cancer survivors
• Late effects in cancer survivors
• Adolescent gynaecology
• Disorders of sexual development
• Surgical sperm retrieval procedures
• Endometriosis
• Recurrent miscarriages
• Ultrasound including 3D technique

                                                

PUBLICATIONS IN JOURNALS

Abdallah Y, Briggs J, Fitzgerald CT. Better referrals and funding are needed for preserving fertility. BMJ. 2017 Jan 10;356:i6801. doi: 10.1136/bmj.i6801. PubMed PMID: 28073744.

 

Yazan Abdallah, Jonathan Briggs, Joshua Jones, Gregory Horne & Cheryl Fitzgerald (2018) A nationwide UK survey of female fertility preservation prior to cancer treatment, Human Fertility, 21:1, 27-34, DOI: 10.1080/14647273.2017.1321787.

Preisler J, Kopeika J, Ismail L, Vathanan V, Farren J, Abdallah Y, Battacharjee P, Van Holsbeke C, Bottomley C, Gould D, Johnson S, Stalder C, Van Calster B, Hamilton J, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Defining safe criteria to diagnose  miscarriage: prospective observational multicentre study. BMJ. 2015 Sep 23;351:h4579. doi: 10.1136/bmj.h4579. PubMed PMID: 26400869; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4580727.

 

Abdallah Y, Daemen A, Kirk E, Pexsters A, Naji O, Stalder C, Gould D, Ahmed S, Guha S, Syed S, Bottomley C, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Limitations of current definitions of miscarriage using mean gestational sac diameter and crown-rump length measurements: a multicenter observational study. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2011 Nov;38(5):497-502. doi: 10.1002/uog.10109. Epub 2011 Oct 13. PubMed PMID: 21997898.

 

 

Abdallah Y, Naji O, Saso S, Pexsters A, Stalder C, Sur S, Raine-Fenning N, Timmerman D, Brosens JJ, Bourne T. Ultrasound assessment of the peri-implantation uterus: a review. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2012 Jun;39(6):612-9. doi: 10.1002/uog.10098. Review. PubMed PMID: 21910147.

 

Mahendru AA, Daemen A, Everett TR, Wilkinson IB, McEniery CM, Abdallah Y, Timmerman D, Bourne T, Lees CC. Impact of ovulation and implantation timing on first-trimester crown-rump length and gestational age. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2012 Dec;40(6):630-5. doi: 10.1002/uog.12277. PubMed PMID: 22858888.

 

Abdallah Y, Daemen A, Guha S, Syed S, Naji O, Pexsters A, Kirk E, Stalder C, Gould D, Ahmed S, Bottomley C, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Gestational sac and embryonic growth are not useful as criteria to define miscarriage: a multicentre observational study. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2011 Nov;38(5):503-9. doi: 10.1002/uog.10075. Epub 2011 Oct 13. PubMed PMID: 21858883.

 Bobdiwala S, Harvey R, Abdallah Y, Al-Memar M, Fisher R, Stalder C, Timmerman D, Bourne T. The potential use of urinary hCG measurements in the management of pregnancies of unknown location. Hum Fertil (Camb). 2020 Jun 16:1-8. doi: 10.1080/14647273.2020.1777590. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 32544009.

Abdallah Y, Stalder C, Bourne T. Three-dimensional image of a tubal heterotopic pregnancy following assisted reproduction treatment. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2011 Oct;38(4):484-5. doi: 10.1002/uog.10091. PubMed PMID: 21936006.

 

Pexsters A, Luts J, Van Schoubroeck D, Bottomley C, Van Calster B, Van Huffel S, Abdallah Y, D'Hooghe T, Lees C, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Clinical implications of intra- and interobserver reproducibility of transvaginal sonographic measurement of gestational sac and crown-rump length at 6-9 weeks' gestation. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2011 Nov;38(5):510-5. doi: 10.1002/uog.8884. Epub 2011 Oct 13. PubMed PMID: 21077156.

 

Naji O, Abdallah Y, Bij De Vaate AJ, Smith A, Pexsters A, Stalder C, McIndoe A, Ghaem-Maghami S, Lees C, Brölmann HA, Huirne JA, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Standardized approach for imaging and measuring Cesarean section scars using ultrasonography. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2012 Mar;39(3):252-9. doi: 10.1002/uog.10077. Review. PubMed PMID: 21858885.

 

Salker MS, Nautiyal J, Steel JH, Webster Z, Sućurović S, Nicou M, Singh Y, Lucas ES, Murakami K, Chan YW, James S, Abdallah Y, Christian M, Croy BA, Mulac-Jericevic B, Quenby S, Brosens JJ. Disordered IL-33/ST2 activation in decidualizing stromal cells prolongs uterine receptivity in women with recurrent pregnancy loss. PLoS One. 2012;7(12):e52252. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0052252. Epub 2012 Dec 27. PubMed PMID: 23300625; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3531406.

 

Saso S, Logan K, Abdallah Y, Louis LS, Ghaem-Maghami S, Smith JR, Del Priore G. Use of cyclosporine in uterine transplantation. J Transplant. 2012;2012:134936. doi: 10.1155/2012/134936. Epub 2011 Nov 10. PubMed PMID: 22132302; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3216255.

 

Saso S, Chatterjee J, Yazbek J, Thum Y, Keefe KW, Abdallah Y, Naji O, Lindsay I, Savage PM, Seckl MJ, Smith JR. A case of pregnancy following a modified Strassman procedure applied to treat a placental site trophoblastic tumour. BJOG. 2012 Dec;119(13):1665-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2012.03501.x. Epub 2012 Oct 19. PubMed PMID: 23078379.

 

Sayasneh A, Wynants L, Preisler J, Kaijser J, Johnson S, Stalder C, Husicka R, Abdallah Y, Raslan F, Drought A, Smith AA, Ghaem-Maghami S, Epstein E, Van Calster B, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Multicentre external validation of IOTA prediction models and RMI by operators with varied training. Br J Cancer. 2013 Jun 25;108(12):2448-54. doi: 10.1038/bjc.2013.224. Epub 2013 May 14. PubMed PMID: 23674083; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3694231.

 

Naji O, Wynants L, Smith A, Abdallah Y, Saso S, Stalder C, Van Huffel S, Ghaem-Maghami S, Van Calster B, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Does the presence of a Caesarean section scar affect implantation site and early pregnancy outcome in women attending an early pregnancy assessment unit? Hum Reprod. 2013 Jun;28(6):1489-96. doi: 10.1093/humrep/det110. Epub 2013 Apr 12. PubMed PMID: 23585560.

 

Sayasneh A, Kaijser J, Preisler J, Johnson S, Stalder C, Husicka R, Guha S, Naji O, Abdallah Y, Raslan F, Drought A, Smith AA, Fotopoulou C, Ghaem-Maghami S, Van Calster B, Timmerman D, Bourne T. A multicenter prospective external validation of the diagnostic performance of IOTA simple descriptors and rules to characterize ovarian masses. Gynecol Oncol. 2013 Jul;130(1):140-6. doi: 10.1016/j.ygyno.2013.04.003. Epub 2013 Apr 8. PubMed PMID: 23578539.

 

Galjaard S, Pexsters A, Devlieger R, Guelinckx I, Abdallah Y, Lewis C, van Calster B, Bourne T, Timmerman D, Luts J. The influence of weight gain patterns in pregnancy on fetal growth using cluster analysis in an obese and nonobese population. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2013 Jul;21(7):1416-22. doi: 10.1002/oby.20348. Epub 2013 May 29. PubMed PMID: 23408453.

 

Naji O, Wynants L, Smith A, Abdallah Y, Stalder C, Sayasneh A, McIndoe A, Ghaem-Maghami S, Van Huffel S, Van Calster B, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Predicting successful vaginal birth after Cesarean section using a model based on Cesarean scar features examined by transvaginal sonography. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2013 Jun;41(6):672-8. doi: 10.1002/uog.12423. PubMed PMID: 23371440.

 

Van Calster B, Abdallah Y, Guha S, Kirk E, Van Hoorde K, Condous G, Preisler J, Hoo W, Stalder C, Bottomley C, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Rationalizing the management of pregnancies of unknown location: temporal and external validation of a risk prediction model on 1962 pregnancies. Hum Reprod. 2013 Mar;28(3):609-16. doi: 10.1093/humrep/des440. Epub 2013 Jan 4. PubMed PMID: 23293216.

 

Naji O, Daemen A, Smith A, Abdallah Y, Saso S, Stalder C, Sayasneh A, McIndoe A, Ghaem-Maghami S, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Changes in Cesarean section scar dimensions during pregnancy: a prospective longitudinal study. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2013 May;41(5):556-62. doi: 10.1002/uog.12334. PubMed PMID: 23108803.

 

Sayasneh A, Naji O, Abdallah Y, Stalder C, Bourne T. Changes seen in the ultrasound features of a presumed decidualised ovarian endometrioma mimicking malignancy. J Obstet Gynaecol. 2012 Nov;32(8):807-11. doi: 10.3109/01443615.2012.707256. PubMed PMID: 23075365.

 

Sayasneh A, Preisler J, Smith A, Saso S, Naji O, Abdallah Y, Stalder C, Daemen A, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Do pocket-sized ultrasound machines have the potential to be used as a tool to triage patients in obstetrics and gynecology? Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2012 Aug;40(2):145-50. doi: 10.1002/uog.11184. PubMed PMID: 22605511.

 

Naji O, Daemen A, Smith A, Abdallah Y, Bradburn E, Giggens R, Chan DC, Stalder C, Ghaem-Maghami S, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Does the presence of a cesarean section scar influence the site of placental implantation and subsequent migration in future pregnancies: a prospective case-control study. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2012 Nov;40(5):557-61. doi: 10.1002/uog.11133. PubMed PMID:  22323094.

 

Naji O, Daemen A, Smith A, Abdallah Y, Saso S, Stalder C, Sayasneh A, McIndoe A, Ghaem-Maghami S, Timmerman D, Bourne T. Visibility and measurement of caesarean section scars in pregnancy: a reproducibility study. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol. 2012 Nov;40(5):549-56. doi: 10.1002/uog.11132. PubMed PMID: 22323065.

 

Naji O, Hussain A, Abdallah Y. Incidental finding of huge ovarian borderline mucinous tumour during management of laparoscopic gastric banding port infection. J Obstet Gynaecol. 2010 Feb;30(2):212-3. doi: 10.3109/01443610903477507. PubMed PMID: 20143997.

 

Publications

Journals

More Publications