Investigating The Utility Of Primary Care Skin Cancer Clinics In Queensland
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$187,000.00
Summary
Skin cancer is the most common cancer in Australia, with an estimated 375,000 people being treated for some skin cancer in Australia in 2002, and 1462 dying from the disease (mainly from melanoma) in 2001. Australia has the highest rate of skin cancer, both melanoma and non-melanoma is the world. However, if detected early, skin cancer is curable, and the focus of current treatment programs internationally is to detect the disease before it progresses to an advanced stage. A large proportion of ....Skin cancer is the most common cancer in Australia, with an estimated 375,000 people being treated for some skin cancer in Australia in 2002, and 1462 dying from the disease (mainly from melanoma) in 2001. Australia has the highest rate of skin cancer, both melanoma and non-melanoma is the world. However, if detected early, skin cancer is curable, and the focus of current treatment programs internationally is to detect the disease before it progresses to an advanced stage. A large proportion of skin cancers are first detected by the non-medical community. However, due to the two-tiered medical system in Australia, a person first seeks medical opinion from a general practitioner (GP), who acts as a gatekeeper for further treatment from a specialist. Therefore the ability of GPs to be able to discern which lesions require further treatment is crucial, both for the patient, and the financial burden on the health system. A recent development has been the establishment of dedicated primary skin care clinics, which offer open access consultations to the community for the diagnosis and treatment of skin cancers and pigmented lesions. The emergence of these clinics has created much debate in the medical media. Concern has been expressed about the skills of practitioners in these clinics, whilst others argue that sub-specialisation in primary care will lead to improvements in the management of patients. As there is currently no data on the volume, casemix and diagnostic accuracy of these clinics it is difficult to assess the diagnostic ability of skin cancer clinics. This will be the first project to quantify the role of skin clinics in the diagnosis of skin cancer in the community, and in particular their case volume, casemix and diagnostic accuracy, and assess these measures in relation to a comparable sample of general practitioners. Queensland is an ideal location for a study of this type due to its high incidence of both types of skin cancer.Read moreRead less
SNAC2: A Randomised Trial Of Extending Sentinel Node Based Management To Women With Larger Or Multifocal Breast Cancers
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,266,430.00
Summary
SNAC2 extends the work begun in SNAC1, which recruited 1,088 women over 4 years. SNAC1 will determine if sentinel node biopsy causes less arm problems than axillary clearance. The goal of SNAC2 is to establish the risk of local recurrence and long term safety of sentinel node biopsy, especially for women with larger or multiple tumours. SNAC2 is needed to determine whether the smaller operation gives cure rates as good as axillary clearance. If it does, then it will become standard practice.
Circulating Tumour DNA (ctDNA) As A Diagnostic Tool In Colorectal Cancer: Role In Screening And Early Detection Of Metastatic Or Recurrent Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$500,478.00
Summary
These studies will be exploring the value of using a blood test to detect cancer DNA as a screening test for colorectal cancer. This test promises to be superior to faecal blood testing, which is currently performed as part of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program. It may also have advantages over colonoscopy as a screening tool. Given the likely acceptability of having a blood based screening test, it is expected that participation rates in bowel cancer screening, which has been shown to ....These studies will be exploring the value of using a blood test to detect cancer DNA as a screening test for colorectal cancer. This test promises to be superior to faecal blood testing, which is currently performed as part of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program. It may also have advantages over colonoscopy as a screening tool. Given the likely acceptability of having a blood based screening test, it is expected that participation rates in bowel cancer screening, which has been shown to save lives, will be greatly increased.Read moreRead less
The Diagnosis Of Obstructive Sleep Apnea In Primary Care
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$295,075.00
Summary
The gold standard method for diagnosis of sleep apnea is the overnight sleep study. These tests are expensive, have long waiting lists and are hard to access outside larger cities. We aim to determine if general practitioners can combine information from questionnaires and a simple home diagnostic test, to confirm or rule out sleep apnea. The results of this study will eventually lead to more accessible and efficient diagnosis and treatment of this common condition.
Genetic Approaches To Understand How Imbalanced Cytokine Signalling Drives The Pathogenesis Of Emphysema
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$519,715.00
Summary
Emphysema is a major component of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), the fifth leading cause of death in Australia for which there is no effective treatment. We have discovered a specific mutation in a gene called gp130 that results in the formation of emphysema in mice. This finding allows us to understand the exact mechanisms by which this mutation causes emphysema, and therefore has the potential to uncover new strategies to design novel therapies against emphysema in humans.
Early Detection Of Infants And Young Children With Autism
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$268,250.00
Summary
Autism is a severely handicapping condition adversely affecting social interaction, communication, behaviour, interests, and activities. Autism requires treatment at an early age (before 4 years). Despite finding that parents notice problems with their child's development within the first 2 years, on average diagnoses are made around 6 years of age. Treatment for autism should begin as early as possible to improve outcome. Diagnosis requires specialist assessment and these services are limited. ....Autism is a severely handicapping condition adversely affecting social interaction, communication, behaviour, interests, and activities. Autism requires treatment at an early age (before 4 years). Despite finding that parents notice problems with their child's development within the first 2 years, on average diagnoses are made around 6 years of age. Treatment for autism should begin as early as possible to improve outcome. Diagnosis requires specialist assessment and these services are limited. Therefore it is not possible to undertake such assessments with all children who have developmental problems. This project therefore proposes to evaluate a method for screening large populations of children for autism, thus enabling timely and more appropriate referral to assessment services. Previous work by the investigators has developed a potential screening tool (DBC Early Screen) for autism in young children under 4 years with developmental delay that has high levels of accuracy in identifying those infants and children who are at risk of autism and require specialist assessment. This project proposes to undertake a community field trial to assess the accuracy and reliability of this early screen and to establish its suitability for wide use as a population screening tool. The preliminary testing of DBC Early Screen demonstrated that a community field trial was feasible. The results of this study will facilitate the referral of infants and young children to specialist autism assessment services, thus enabling the commencement of appropriate early intervention for children and their families from an early age.Read moreRead less
To reduce Australia's future dementia burden, it is imperative to develop methods to identify those Australians at the very early stage of dementia. To achieve this goal, we are establishing multidisciplinary research projects to track disease progression from the very early stage. These projects use cutting-edge neuroscience technologies to examine how the mind and brain change in dementia. My goal is to discover novel methods for early detection, and develop early intervention strategies.
The CRE is a collaboration of researchers who have a national and strategic focus for research into asbestos related diseases and cancers. The National Centre for Asbestos Related Diseases provides a platform to build on Australia’s existing research expertise and encourages strong organisational linkages to ensure our research is systematic and complementary to existing research efforts in the area of asbestos related diseases.
A New Non-invasive Diagnostic Technique Based On Detection Of Exhaled Respiratory Pathogens.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$179,300.00
Summary
We developed a special collection mask and showed that the breath of people with colds or flu contains a tiny amount of virus. Currently, diagnostic samples are collected by putting a tube into the airways - this is very uncomfortable. Our masks may provide a new and more comfortable way to diagnose lung infections. We want to build better masks and ways to detect viruses and bacteria to test out this method. This may create a new test that will improve diagnosis and treatment.
The Opposing Roles Of STAT1 And STAT3 Signalling By IL-6 Family Cytokines In Inflammation And Tumourigenesis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$472,770.00
Summary
Stomach cancer is the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, and results in the yearly death of several thousand people in Australia alone. We have discovered a specific mutation in a gene for a receptor molecule called gp130 that results in the formation of stomach cancer in mice. Strikingly, mice with this mutation are also highly susceptible to clinically-relevant experimental models of septic shock and peritonitis, two chronic inflammatory disorders induced by bacterial ....Stomach cancer is the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide, and results in the yearly death of several thousand people in Australia alone. We have discovered a specific mutation in a gene for a receptor molecule called gp130 that results in the formation of stomach cancer in mice. Strikingly, mice with this mutation are also highly susceptible to clinically-relevant experimental models of septic shock and peritonitis, two chronic inflammatory disorders induced by bacterial infection. We are now aiming to understand the exact molecular events by which this mutation results in the uncontrolled growth of epithelial cells that line the stomach wall, as well as uncontrolled regulation of the immune system leading to local and systemic inflammation. At the molecular level, the mutation in gp130 leads to over-activation of two signalling molecules, Stat1 and Stat3, which are also used by a range of other receptors to transmit specific cellular responses. In the context of cancer and inflammation, Stat1 and Stat3 have opposing roles (ie Stat3 promotes cancer and can be both anti-pro-inflammatory, while Stat1 suppresses cancer and is pro-inflammatory), although as yet, the contribution of the gp130 receptor in directing Stat1 and Stat3 activation in these disorders is not known. Our proposal employs established strategies and unique mouse models to specifically address how the mutation in gp130 can orchestrate the opposing biological functions of these two molecules to drive stomach cancer and inflammation. The identification of mechanisms by which gp130-dependent activation of these two molecules causally relate to inflammation and stomach cancer will ultimately provide novel and rational approaches to target these molecules for the screening and treatment of various inflammatory disorders and cancers, including those of the stomach.Read moreRead less