Address
Suite 20 Netcare Femina Hospital, 460 Belvedere Street, Arcadia, 0083, Pretoria
Work Hours
Monday to Thursday: 8H30 - 13H00
Address
Suite 20 Netcare Femina Hospital, 460 Belvedere Street, Arcadia, 0083, Pretoria
Work Hours
Monday to Thursday: 8H30 - 13H00

Greta Dreyer graduated from the University of Pretoria in 1987 with an MBChB, an MMed in 1994 and a PhD in 2011. She is currently an Associate Professor and Head of the Gynaecologic Oncology Unit at Pretoria Academic Hospital and the University of Pretoria. Her unit admits about 400 new patients with cervical cancer per year, of which about one hundred qualifies for radical surgery. She is personally involved in about fifty radical hysterectomies per year; operates on many ovarian cancer patients per year as well as numerous patients with other female cancers.
Professor Dreyer has vast experience in the management of cancer risk, including cancer risk estimation, genetic testing, counselling, cancer screening and cancer prevention strategies. This stems mainly from her intensive involvement with the Familial Cancer Clinic since 1997 and her involvement in HPV research and testing since 2004. She actively engages in research in women’s cancer. Her main interests include viral oncogenesis, cancer prevention in women who are predisposed through inheritance or immune depletion. Greta is also interested in building research capacity and development of surgical skills in under-resourced areas.
Professor Dreyer’s teaching activities include presenting numerous education and pedagogic courses and she produced nineteen educational publications and products. Other teaching contributions include being a member of five national and ten international bodies, the founder and director of the HPV Cervical Cancer Research Fund (non-profit company) and executive director of the UP-Netcare Familial Cancer Centre (private – public partnership). She also participated in national and international teaching associations, bodies and committees as convener, examiner and moderator. Greta has trained 39 postgraduate students in an area of high relevance to the cancer landscape in South Africa and currently supervises 10 students.
Her research outputs include 43 publications that have appeared in peer-reviewed journals and an additional three that are currently in press, fifteen published conference papers/keynote addresses and five technical reports. Professor Dreyer has been the Founder (and Editor-in-chief until July 2017) of the Southern African Journal of Gynaecological Oncology (SAJGO), Chair of the Research Committee of the University of Pretoria’s School of Medicine in the Faculty of Medicine from 2013 to 2014, Head of the Women’s Cancer Research Group, Academic Head of the Gynaecological Oncology Service Unit and member of the Executive Committee of the School of Medicine from 2007 until 2009.
Prof Dreyer’s community outreach projects include workshops and tuition of volunteers and nurses at CANSA. She was involved with the Reach for Recovery group, volunteer nursing education programmes, regular radio talks, TV shows on medical matters, colposcopy and treatment courses for medical doctors/health care workers.
Greta has served on several panels and advisory boards. She has been a member of the Sub-Saharan Africa HPV Expert Panel since 2006 and Chair of the Research Group of the South African HPV Advisory Board.
Using personal cancer history, family history, and genetic testing to establish whether an increased cancer risk has been inherited, contributes to the management of cancer and to the prevention of future cancer in patients and their families. This specialized area of work requires specialised knowledge, interest, patience and counselling to obtain good outcomes, but it presents us with a powerful opportunity to impact on women’s cancer risk and outcomes.
The focus of my sub-specialty and advanced training is complex pelvic and gynaecologic cancer surgery. I believe in tailoring the extent of surgery to tumour size and patient characteristics, but not in compromising cancer control to limit surgical morbidity. Accurate staging and cancer control in cervical, uterine and vulva cancer requires fairly standardized primary surgical treatment in almost all cases.
Ovarian cancer treatment requires a tailored approach as primary, interval of secondary cytoreductive operations together with the use of chemotherapy. Salvage surgery in all gynaecologic cancer is a personal interest and includes radical and ultra-radical surgery to attempt salvage in a desperate situation when other treatment options are either exhausted or will be less effective.
The impact of female hormones and their withdrawal on the female body structures and function remains fascinating. In addition, the impact of natural and pharmaceutical hormones on cancer risk and cancer cells is both critically important and a source of huge anxiety. Women’s cancers are increasingly treated with hormones and anti-hormones, and the cancer risk increases and decreases via hormonal therapy are understood better. I am passionate to interpret these influences to patients in order to mediate fully informed decision-making.
Sexual and reproductive health is at the core of multiple issues that affect QoL dramatically. A holistic view of women’s health require a strong focus on not only survival, but also quality of life. Issues of importance include pubertal difficulties, relationships, pregnancy and fertility problems, empowerment, menopausal symptoms, ageing, survivorship after cancer treatment, and end-of-life support.
I am interested in all medical, surgical and non-medical interventions to improve QoL and believe that these all deserve more attention.
Marlene is a qualified registered nurse practitioner. She has been managing the diary and all clinical aspects of the practice since 2008 and has vast experience of the challenges and peri-operative management of women with gynaecologic disease and especially cancer.
Contact Marlene:
Tel: 012 325 0309
Charlien takes responsibility for the finances of the practice, and will be able to discuss payment options, discount, and terms. She is also responsible for accounts and communication regarding accounts and payment with patients, funders and medical aids.
Contact Charlien:
Tel: 012 325 0310