Nicholas M. Fisk (born 12 September 1956) is an Australian maternal-fetal medicine specialist, academic and researcher. As an obstetrician, Fisk is known for inventing the natural caesarean operation, also referred to as the family centred caesarean section. He has pioneered advances in understanding fetoplacental disease and its treatment, including characterising early human fetal stem cell populations, documenting “fetal pain” and its blockade by opioid analgesia, and unravelling the vascular basis of twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome. In 2016 he was appointed as Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) at the

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensiv ...

(UNSW Sydney).

Early life and career

Nicholas Fisk was educated at St Ignatius College Riverview, the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's ...

(MBBS 1980),

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

(PhD 1992) and

Imperial College London Imperial College London (legally Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. Its history began with Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, who developed his vision for a cu ...

(MBA 2008). Fisk was Professor of Obstetrics & Fetal Medicine (1992-2007) at

Queen Charlotte's Hospital Queen Charlotte's and Chelsea Hospital is one of the oldest maternity hospitals in Europe, founded in 1739 in London. Until October 2000, it occupied a site at 339–351 Goldhawk Road, Hammersmith, but is now located between East Acton and W ...

and Imperial College London, where his laboratory and clinical research program achieved an international reputation in fetal diagnosis and treatment. He returned to Australia in 2008 as the inaugural Director of th
Centre for Clinical Research
�at the

University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = B ...

, where between 2010-2016 he served as Executive Dean of the Faculties of Health, Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. From 2000-2001 he was President of th
International Fetal Medicine and Surgery Society
ref name=":4"> and from 2016-2020 Chair of the Association fo
Academic Health Centers International
�(AAHCI Steering Committee). He was elected to the Fellowship of the Academy of Health and Medical Sciences in 2014. In 2020 he was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Order (distinction), honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarchy of Australia, Queen of Aus ...

for significant service to tertiary education, and to maternal-fetal medicine. He continues to serve on the Board of Research Australia (from 2016) and was recently appointed (2021) as Chair of the Go8 Deputy Vice-Chancellor’s (Research) committee.

Expertise and advocacy

Fisk’s research area is human fetoplacental disease and its treatment, including fetal stem cells, fetal “pain", and monochorionic (identical) twins. In 2019, Fisk and Michael Gabbett, along with their group, documented the likely genetic basis of

semi-identical twins Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of TwinLast Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two em ...

, with identical maternal DNA, but paternal DNA from different sperms. Fisk has published over 300 research papers, and served on the editorial boards of

PLoS Medicine ''PLOS Medicine'' (formerly styled ''PLoS Medicine'') is a peer-reviewed weekly medical journal covering the full spectrum of the medical sciences. It began operation on October 19, 2004, as the second journal of the Public Library of Science (PLO ...

and

Human Reproduction Human reproduction is sexual reproduction that results in human fertilization to produce a human offspring. It typically involves sexual intercourse between a sexually mature human male and female. During sexual intercourse, the interaction ...

. As an influential clinician, he is known for promoting the natural caesarean operation, and as an advocate for women’s right to choose their mode of delivery. His research on fetal pain has been used by both sides in the abortion debate.

References

External links

Who's Who Australia
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Biography at UNSWLinkedIn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fisk, Nicholas 1956 births Living people Australian obstetricians University of Sydney alumni Alumni of University College London Alumni of Imperial College London Academics of University College London University of Queensland faculty Fellows of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences Fellows of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists Fellows of the Royal Society of New South Wales University of New South Wales faculty