Children's Cancer Research Unit
News, Events & Resources
Please come back regularly to see updated information including:
Recent Announcements
Oncology Research Unit changes it's name to Children's Cancer Research Unit
We're pleased to announce that the Oncology Research Unit will be changing its name to the Children's Cancer Research Unit on 17 November 2009. The date coincides with the external launch of the Kids Research Institute. While the name Oncology Research Unit has served well since the establishment of the Unit in 1997, we are keen to include the more broadly understood word "cancer" in our new name. "Identifying ourselves as the Children's Cancer Research Unit also highlights our focus on cancers occurring in children and young people, and conveys this to our professional colleagues and valued community supporters" said A/Prof Jennifer Byrne.
Recent Achievements
Recent Grant Success
NHMRC Project grant
Chief Investigator: Geraldine O'Neill
Project title: The Cell Biology of Glioblastoma Infiltration
Amount awarded: $508,225 over three years
Project Summary: Glioblastomas are the most common and lethal brain tumours and 5 years after diagnosis only 20% of patients diagnosed with a glioblastoma will be alive. The poor survival rate is due to the ability of these tumours to extensively penetrate into the surrounding healthy brain tissue making complete surgical removal very difficult. Our research aims to discover how the glioblastoma cells can penetrate neighbouring brain tissue.
NHMRC Enabling Grant
Chief Investigators: Lisa Devereux, Dan Catchpoole, Anna de Fazio, Jeanette Creaney, Christopher Schmidt, Heather Thorne and Nik Zeps
Project title: The Australian Biospecimens Network - Oncology
Amount awarded: 2.0m over five years
Project Summary: Availability of ethically consented, clinically annotated human cancer tissue is a key determinant of the international competitiveness of Australian biomedical researchers. This project will provide a structured national network to collect, process and disseminate tumour tissue; strategically target specific tumour types such as mesothelioma and rare paediatric tumours that can only be collected in substantial numbers through the formation of such a network and provide infrastructure that can be contracted by clinical and translational researchers. The project builds on a wealth of experience in tissue banking, large-scale molecular genetic and genomic studies in breast, ovarian, colorectal cancers and mesothelioma, and on an established consortium - The Australasian Biospecimen Network (of which The Children's Hospital at Westmead's Paediatric Tumour Bank is a Founding Member).
The Clive and Vera Ramaciotti Foundation
Chief Investigator: Justin Lees
Project title: The Regulation of Cancer Cell Migration within Solid Tissue
Amount awarded: $50,000
Project summary: The development of metastatic (secondary) tumours is a major cause of cancer death. The extra-cellular matrix around cells can be manipulated to provide a migration route away from the primary tumour, leading to the development of metastatic tumours. In this project we will define the cellular machinery that regulates cancer cell movement through 3-D extracellular matrix and discover how cancer cells can regulate the structure and organization of the ECM surrounding the tumour. This may lead to the development of new therapy targets for the treatment of metastatic disease.
Other Achievements
Australian and New Zealand Society for Cell and Developmental Biology (ANZSCDB) - Student Exchange Travel Award (Oct 09)
Awardee: Jessie Zhong
Amount awarded: $500
Summary: Travel support for a short training visit to a laboratory at the Queensland Brain Institute (QBI), where Jessie will learn to perform a culture technique known as organotypic brain slice culture from Prof. Pankaj Sah and take this back to The Children's Hospital at Westmead. Using this technique Jessie will be able to study brain tumour cells in an environment that mimics the physiological brain environment.
Articles
- The latest Tumour Bank Newsletter, see Tumour Bank
- Recent research articles in the Chemo Chronicle - A quarterly magazine published for parents (and their families) of CHW patients who are on treatment or have undergone treatment. The magazine is designed to provide information and support to readers whilst being fun and entertaining.
Scientific
The CCRU Seminar Series: The Oncology Research Unit holds a seminar every Wednesday at 2.00 p.m. with updates on current research projects and also presentations by invited speakers. For further information on the seminar times and topics, please contact Janett Clarkson.
In the News
Media Releases
Media
This document was updated on Tuesday, 17 November 2009
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