Associate Professor Claudia Di Bella is an accomplished orthopaedic surgeon based in Melbourne, specialising in the comprehensive management of arthritis of the hip and knee and the treatment of bone and soft tissue tumours.

Educational Background and Early Career

A/Prof Di Bella studied Medicine and Surgery at Bologna University, the first established University in Europe, graduating in 2002 with honours. She has completed her orthopaedic training in 2007 at the Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute in Bologna, one of the world's most renowned orthopaedic hospitals. Her passion for the treatment of bone and soft tissue tumours started there, where she had the privilege to work alongside the world's best tumour surgeons, with Prof Davide Donati as her mentor. In 2012, A/Prof Di Bella obtained her PhD in oncology and experimental pathology.

A/Prof Di Bella moved to Australia in 2009, where she completed her fellowship in musculoskeletal tumors at St Vincent’s Hospital in Melbourne.

Innovation in Surgical Techniques

A/Prof Di Bella specialises in lower limb joint replacement surgery and the treatment of bone and soft tissue tumours (sarcomas). Her expertise encompasses employing minimally invasive techniques and leveraging state-of-the-art surgical technologies, including 3D printing and robotic-assisted procedures, to optimise patient outcomes. A/Prof Di Bella is one of the few surgeons in Melbourne expert in pelvic resections and reconstruction with 3D printed custom-made prosthesis and is a leader in Australia performing 3D printing and robotically assisted surgical innovations.

A/Prof Di Bella is a member of:

• Australian Orthopaedic Association (AOA) - MEMBER and VICE CHAIR of the BOARD OF DIRECTORS of RESEARCH FOUNDATION
• Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) - CHAIR of the SECTION OF ACADEMIC SURGERY annual meeting
• Australia and New Zealand Sarcoma Association (ANZSA) - CHAIR of 2020 ANNUAL CONFERENCE
• International Society of Limb Salvage (ISOLS) - CHAIR of INCLUSION AND DIVERSITY COMMITTEE for the 2023 conference
• American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS)
• Asia-Pacific Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (AP-MSTS)
• International Society of Cartilage Regeneration (ICRS)
• Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS)
• Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Society (TERMIS)

As an Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Melbourne, she is the clinical lead of the cartilage regeneration program and osteosarcoma 3D printing program at the Biofab3D, part of the Aikenhead Centre for Medical Discovery (ACMD).

A/Prof Di Bella has an impressive publication record in peer-reviewed journals and has delivered oral presentations at national and international conferences and has received numerous research awards, such as the prestigious NHMRC-MRFF Investigator Grant (2020-2025), the Senior Research Fellowship from the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, the Early Career research award from the ANZ Orthopaedic Research Society, and the Orthoregeneration Network award from the International Cartilage Regeneration Society.

List of publications, updated May 2024

Click here.