Full Name
Robert Bechara
Job Title
Associate Professor
Company
Queen's University, Division of Gastroenterology Kingston Health Sciences Center
Speaker Bio
Dr. Robert Bechara is an Associate Professor at Queen’s University and an advanced therapeutic endoscopist at Kingston Health Sciences Centre in Kingston, Ontario. His clinical and academic practice focuses on third-space endoscopy, endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD), magnifying endoscopy, optical diagnosis, and minimally invasive management of gastrointestinal neoplasia, including Barrett’s neoplasia.
He completed internal medicine and gastroenterology training at Queen’s University, followed by advanced therapeutic endoscopy fellowship training at St. Michael’s Hospital, University of Toronto. He then undertook a one-year third-space endoscopy fellowship with Professor Haruhiro Inoue at Showa University Digestive Disease Center Koto-Toyosu Hospital in Tokyo, becoming the first Canadian to complete this formal program. His training included POEM, ESD, POET, anti-reflux mucosectomy, and advanced magnifying endoscopy.
Dr. Bechara has since become one of Canada’s leading experts in ESD and has contributed significantly to advancing ESD training, adoption, and capacity across the country. He is also a recognized leader in optical diagnosis, with a particular interest in improving the quality, consistency, and confidence of advanced endoscopic imaging in North America. To support this mission, he established the first formal optical diagnosis course in North America.
In 2025, he completed additional focused training in pharyngeal ESD at the Cancer Institute Hospital of the Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research in Tokyo. He subsequently introduced pharyngeal ESD to North America and continues to advance education in endoscopic imaging and resection. His current work also includes POEM, full-thickness resection, complex tissue acquisition, and educational initiatives designed to disseminate advanced endoscopic techniques nationally and internationally.
He completed internal medicine and gastroenterology training at Queen’s University, followed by advanced therapeutic endoscopy fellowship training at St. Michael’s Hospital, University of Toronto. He then undertook a one-year third-space endoscopy fellowship with Professor Haruhiro Inoue at Showa University Digestive Disease Center Koto-Toyosu Hospital in Tokyo, becoming the first Canadian to complete this formal program. His training included POEM, ESD, POET, anti-reflux mucosectomy, and advanced magnifying endoscopy.
Dr. Bechara has since become one of Canada’s leading experts in ESD and has contributed significantly to advancing ESD training, adoption, and capacity across the country. He is also a recognized leader in optical diagnosis, with a particular interest in improving the quality, consistency, and confidence of advanced endoscopic imaging in North America. To support this mission, he established the first formal optical diagnosis course in North America.
In 2025, he completed additional focused training in pharyngeal ESD at the Cancer Institute Hospital of the Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research in Tokyo. He subsequently introduced pharyngeal ESD to North America and continues to advance education in endoscopic imaging and resection. His current work also includes POEM, full-thickness resection, complex tissue acquisition, and educational initiatives designed to disseminate advanced endoscopic techniques nationally and internationally.
