Dr Christine Lai graduated from the University of Adelaide with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (M.B.B.S.) in 1998, and did
her internship at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. She did her General Surgical training in Adelaide, South Australia.

In 2004, Dr Lai passed the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons Fellowship exams in General Surgery. She undertook further specialist Breast and Endocrine Surgical training at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Adelaide, and The St Georges Hospital, Sydney from 2005-2007.

On return from Sydney, Dr Lai also trained in TQEH Department of Radiology to obtain Specialist Sonologist (ultrasound) qualifications. She is one of a handful of General Surgeons to have been awarded Diploma in Diagnostic Ultrasound (Surgery), by the Australasian Society of Ultrasound Medicine, in 2010.

Dr Lai was appointed as a staff-specialist on the Breast and Endocrine Surgical Unit at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital in 2008. She is also a Clinical Senior Lecturer in The University of Adelaide's Department of Surgery.

Besides the treatment of Breast Disorders, Dr Lai has an interest in managing other surgical conditions, particularly Surgical Endocrine Disease. Her expertise includes the following procedures:

thyroid surgery - including minimal access surgery
parathyroid surgery - minimally invasive surgery and standard surgery
adrenal surgery - both open and laparoscopic
spleen surgery - both open and laparoscopic
hernia repair – both open and laparoscopic
gall bladder surgery – laparoscopic usually
colonoscopy (GESA accredited) – examination of the colon for cancer or polyps
vascular access - infusaport insertion