Our People
Executive Leadership Team
Stephen Laughton
Dr Stephen Laughton works at Starship Blood and Cancer Centre (Auckland) and has been involved in the clinical care of children with cancer since 1997. His specific area of interest and expertise is the management of children with brain tumours.
Stephen completed his initial medical and paediatric training in Auckland, and as the inaugural recipient of the Joshua Holland Leukaemia Fund Fellowship in Paediatric Haematology/Oncology Clinical Research, spent three years at the Centre for Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders, Sydney Children’s Hospital, and the Children’s Cancer Institute Australia. He then went on to train in paediatric neuro-oncology at one of the world’s leading children’s cancer institutions – St Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, returning to New Zealand in 2007.
Dr Laughton is the Starship Children’s Hospital Principal Investigator for the Children’s Oncology Group (COG), and is the Health Professional Representative on the Board of the Child Cancer Foundation.
Amy Carter
Amy is an experienced leader in the health sector with significant experience in service development, programme and portfolio management. She has substantial experience in DHB environments managing complex projects involving multiple stakeholders and working across agencies and sectors; leading the establishment of new services; as well as commissioning, procurement and contract management.
From 2012 to 2022 Amy worked at Counties Manukau DHB in various roles across the Child, Youth & Maternity Team as well as the Strategic Planning Team. Prior to this Amy worked at BreastScreen Waitemata-Northland. She has also spent time in Central/Eastern Africa volunteering on public health projects.
Amy is passionate about child health with a strong commitment to achieving equitable outcomes for Māori and ensuring services are patient and whānau-centred.
Amanda Lyver
Amanda trained in New Zealand and Canada and completed her FRACP in Paediatric Oncology in 2008. She completed a post-graduate Diploma in Paediatric Palliative Care in 2010 and has been a member of the South Island Palliative Care Alliance and the National Paediatric Palliative Care Reference Group.
Amanda has been involved as a Health Professional Representative with the Child Cancer Foundation for a number of years. In 2013 Amanda became Clinical Director of the Child Cancer Services based out of CHOC in Christchurch.
Wider Team & Network
Annie Chiang
Annie is a population health researcher with significant experience working with administrative data. Sher recently submitted her PhD on the missingness in government collected datasets, in which she used both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. She has been involved in research related to mental health, ethnic minority health and wellbeing and deprivation.
Outside of the National Child Cancer Network, Annie is a Professional Teaching Fellow at the University of Auckland, where she has taught and co-ordinated courses related to epidemiology, digital health technologies, and health care ethics.
Annie is passionate about promoting health equity through research whilst protecting the taonga of people’s data. She the National Child Cancer Network Database Manager and looks after the New Zealand Children’s Cancer Registry.
Houston Murray
Prior to working for the National Child Cancer Network in 2023, Houston earned her Master’s in Psychology, focusing on the Child Cancer Counselling Network from the perspective of the clinicians.
She has spent time volunteering in the health sector and is particularly interested in the psychosocial support patients and their whānau receive throughout their cancer journey, as well as palliative care in Aotearoa.
Houston is passionate about supporting children and their families with a strong commitment to the National Child Cancer Network’s purpose, vision, and values.
Working Group Chairs
- Siobhan Cross – Pacific Working Group Chairperson – Paediatric Haematologist – Children’s Haematology Oncology Centre, Christchurch
- Erin Kavanagh – LEAP Working Group Chairperson – Paediatric Haematology/Oncology Nurse Practitioner – Starship Blood and Cancer Centre, Auckland
- Andrew Wood – NZCCR Working Group Chairperson – Paediatric Oncologist – Starship Blood and Cancer Centre, Auckland
- Amy Lovell – Nutrition Working Group Chairperson – Paediatric Dietitian – Starship Blood and Cancer Centre, Auckland
Reference Group Members
- Amanda Lyver (Chair) – Paediatric Oncologist – Children’s Haematology Oncology Centre, Te Whatu Ora – Waitaha Canterbury
- Amanda Cleland – Shared Care Nurse Specialist – Starship Blood and Cancer Centre, Te Whatu Ora – Te Toka Tumai Auckland
- Amanda Evans – Paediatric Palliative Care Specialist, CEO – Reikotuku Charitable Trust – Wellington
- Amber Conley – Nurse Unit Manager – Starship Blood and Cancer Centre, Te Whatu Ora – Te Toka Tumai Auckland
- Amy Carter – National Programme Manager – National Child Cancer Network
- Amy Hinder – Paediatrician – Te Whatu Ora – Mid Central
- Andrew Dodgshun – Clinical Director – Children’s Haematology Oncology Centre, Te Whatu Ora – Waitaha Canterbury
- Bridget Kerkin – Manager, Clinical Advisory Team – Te Aho o Te Kahu (Cancer Control Agency)
- Chris Harrington – Radiation Oncologist – Te Whatu Ora – Waitaha Canterbury
- Karina Craine – Paediatrician – Te Whatu Ora – Hauora a Toi Bay of Plenty
- Kirsten Ballantine – National Programme Manager – AYA Cancer Network Aotearoa
- Mark Winstanley – Service Clinical Director – Starship Blood and Cancer Centre, Te Whatu Ora – Te Toka Tumai Auckland
- Monica Briggs – Chief Executive – Child Cancer Foundation
- Morag Taylor – Shared Care Nurse Coordinator – Children’s Haematology Oncology Centre, Te Whatu Ora – Waitaha Canterbury
- Nick Laing – Chief Executive – Canteen
- Rosalind Wood – Paediatrician – Te Whatu Ora – Capital, Coast and Hutt Valley
- Stephanie Smith – Charge Nurse Manager- Children’s Haematology Oncology Centre, Te Whatu Ora – Waitaha Canterbury
- Stephen Laughton – Paediatric Oncologist, Clinical Lead – National Child Cancer Network
- Steve Evans – Paediatric Surgeon – Starship, Te Whatu Ora – Te Toka Tumai Auckland
- Tess Luff – Public Health Physician, Te Aho o Te Kahu (Cancer Control Agency)
- Tim Edmonds – Chief Executive – Leukaemia and Blood Cancer New Zealand