Research Type: Extramural

Dr Hui-Fern Koay

Dr Koay and her team are developing a novel type of immunotherapy which targets a specialised subset of T-cells which possess the potential to attack cancer more effectively than existing T-cell immunotherapies.

If successful, a follow-on clinical trial could provide a new treatment strategy to improve outcomes for children with high-risk neuroblastoma.

Associate Professor Belamy Cheung

By targeting the specific drivers of childhood brain cancers, this project aims to develop a safer and more effective approach to treating these children.

Associate Professor Clare Stirzaker

Associate Professor Clare Stirzaker and her team are developing an accurate and sensitive test that can detect breast cancer in blood, also known as a liquid biopsy.

Dr David Waddington

Improving the precision of this novel radiation technology could present a new treatment strategy for the 1,200 Australians diagnosed with locally advanced pancreatic cancer each year. 

In this project Professor Fazekas and team will analyse pre- and post-therapy blood samples from breast cancer patients and use machine learning statistical techniques to identify the immune signatures that can predict patient response to a particular therapy with the greatest accuracy.

Dr van Delft and Dr Lew co-lead a team with Dr White that aims to enhance the effectiveness of venetoclax, rendering resistant cancer cells sensitive to treatment.

The project aims to develop experimental research using the proposed hardware to show 3D imagining during treatment, MRI quality imaging during treatment and reconstructing actual delivered dose post treatment.

If successful, this project will generate clinically translatable approaches to enhance AML therapy ready for progression to clinical trials to improve outcomes for AML patients.

Professor Turner’s team aims to use cutting edge imaging approaches to shed light on how changes in nutrient metabolism and intracellular signalling contribute to two lethal characteristics of pancreatic cancer, namely chemoresistance and metastatic spread.