Hope, for some Australians, now begins at the departure gate. Faced with devastating brain diagnoses and dwindling options at home, patients and their families are travelling across the world to seek the care of Dr Charlie Teo – a surgeon they say listens when others cannot, and who remains unable to operate in Australian theatres.
As restrictions continue to prevent Dr Teo from performing complex brain surgeries in Australia, desperate patients are travelling thousands of kilometres overseas to seek his care, often as a last resort. For families already grappling with devastating diagnoses, the emotional, physical and financial toll of leaving home for lifesaving treatment is immense.
Yet for those who make the journey, many say it is one they would take again without hesitation.
Kayla Welsh knows that burden all too well. Her mother, a devoted wife and mother of two, was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2021. When the disease later spread to her brain, she was found to have 11 lesions. After radiation treatment, Australian specialists declared her “cancer free” in early 2024.
But by the end of the year, Kayla watched her mother deteriorate rapidly. “Something just wasn’t right,” Kayla told news.com.au. “As her daughter, I knew it.”
Australian doctors maintained the symptoms were caused by radiation necrosis, but Kayla continued to push for answers. When none came, she contacted Dr Teo in August 2025. An appointment was arranged almost immediately.
The turning point came in October, after her mother suffered a fall. While Australian doctors again dismissed MRI scans as showing only swelling, Dr Teo reviewed the same images and reached a very different conclusion.
“He immediately identified two rapidly growing lesions that needed urgent removal,” Kayla said.
Within weeks, Kayla, her parents Shane and her mother were on a flight to China. On November 11, Dr Teo performed a six-hour surgery, successfully removing the two tumours. The following day, a post-operative scan revealed a third hidden lesion. Dr Teo insisted on immediate action, returning her mother to surgery within the hour.
Although her recovery since returning to Australia has been challenging – including haemorrhaging and the emergence of a new tumour – Kayla believes the surgeries gave her mother precious time and a fighting chance.
“The doctors here are refusing to do anything to help her now,” she said. “But Mum has beaten the odds before. She has so much will to fight.”
Kayla says Dr Teo has remained closely involved, offering guidance and support as the family navigates ongoing care back home. “He is the first doctor who genuinely listened to us,” she said. “He wanted to help – truly help.”
“I just can’t help but think how different things would be if we had Charlie available in Australia. He is incredibly talented, humble and compassionate. We need him home.”
Chrissy Coleman, a 63-year-old accomplished teacher, shares that sentiment; 16 months ago, after being struck by a ride-share vehicle, scans revealed a brain tumour she never knew she had. Despite being otherwise healthy, Australian specialists told her that only 0.4 per cent of the tumour could be removed.
“‘Live 10 years if you’re lucky – go have a good life,’” Chrissy recalled being told. Unwilling to accept that prognosis, she sought Dr Teo’s help and travelled to China. There, he removed between 95 and 99 per cent of her Grade 2 oligodendroglioma from her left temporal lobe.
Seven weeks on, Chrissy says she feels “nothing but ecstatic”. Although her recovery initially left her unable to speak, she is improving week by week. “Australia doesn’t operate in these cases, but many countries do,” she said. “I knew there was a chance Charlie would.”
Dr Teo remains subject to conditions imposed on his registration by the Medical Council of NSW, following findings by the Health Care Complaints Commission relating to two historical cases. The restrictions require him to obtain written support from an approved neurosurgeon before performing certain complex surgeries in Australia.
In May last year, Dr Teo formally requested that the conditions be lifted. Since they were imposed, he has performed 236 surgeries overseas under supervision, reporting excellent outcomes for 202 patients and good outcomes for a further 28.
The Medical Council of NSW has said it cannot comment on ongoing matters, publishing decisions only on the national Register of Practitioners. For families like Kayla’s and Chrissy’s, that silence is painful – particularly when time is measured in months, weeks or even days.
Dr Teo says he remains deeply grateful for the trust patients place in him. “I continue to be humbled by the support I receive from the Australian public, from those with brain tumours and from those without,” he told news.com.au this week.
“The trust shown by patients travelling so far to seek my care is a privilege I deeply value.”
For many Australians facing the unthinkable, that trust is rooted not just in surgical skill, but in the belief that hope itself is worth fighting for – and worth bringing home.
Images: Charlie Teo Foundation, Facebook
