Developing A Scalable, Woman-centred Model For Cervical Cancer Screening In Vulnerable Women In India
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,330,369.00
Summary
Cervical cancer is a devastating but preventable disease and 1 in 5 cases of cervical cancer in the world occur in India. We will work with women, communities, and health services in two States of India (Tamil Nadu and Mizoram) to design a woman friendly approach to prevent cervical cancer. This project brings together international and Indian experts to overcome current barriers to cervical screening by using a newer, more effective way of screening to reach underserved women and save lives.
Targeting At Risk Relatives Of Glaucoma Patients For Early Diagnosis And Treatment (TARRGET)
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$595,375.00
Summary
Glaucoma is the second leading cause of blindness in Australia but early detection and treatment can prevent blindness. We will recruit patients with advanced glaucoma from an Australia wide registry and refer their close relatives to have an eye exam and genetic testing to see if they are at risk of glaucoma. We will evaluate how a coordinator can improve the uptake of this screening program referring people to local eye care providers and in rural WA providing screening in 16 remote locations.
A Novel Multi-gene Marker Blood Test To Increase Community Participation In Colorectal Cancer Screening.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$581,116.00
Summary
Bowel cancer screening programs are vital for early detection and prevention, but participation with the traditional faecal testing mode is less than 35%. Reasons include dislike or unsuitability for faecal testing. These barriers could be overcome and participation could increase using a different sampling mode for the screening test. We have developed a blood test for bowel cancer and will investigate if people who will not screen with the stool test will screen with the blood test instead.
Comparative Effectiveness Of Breast Tomosynthesis And Mammography In Real-world Population Screening: Evidence To Underpin And Improve Breast Cancer Screening
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,851,430.00
Summary
This research addresses key evidence gaps in breast cancer screening by investigating tomosynthesis (3D mammography) versus standard 2D mammography screening to establish the effectiveness of tomosynthesis in Australia and internationally, including impact on cancers not detected at screening that progress clinically. Large-scale studies will be done in real world screening services including a prospective comparative study planned collaboratively with BreastScreen to guide screening policy.
Centre For Research Excellence In Cervical Cancer Control (C4)
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,486,383.00
Summary
Cervical cancer remains common globally despite over 50 years of Pap testing. Australia led the world in HPV vaccination and in 2017 will be the first to deliver a national screening program based on HPV testing. Our CRE, led by cervical cancer prevention experts at CCNSW,VCS, and Kirby, will marry cross-disciplinary research and evaluation of HPV vaccination and screening to provide solid evidence about these new approaches with a view to ultimately reducing the global burden of this cancer.
Population Based Genetic Testing For High-risk Breast And Ovarian Cancer Predisposition Genes
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,112,985.00
Summary
Inherited mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 confer a very high risk of breast and ovarian cancer. Importantly, once carriers are identified, effective strategies are available that can dramatically reduce the risk of cancer. We will perform genetic testing of a healthy western population to identify breast/ovarian cancer genes before the women develop cancer. Population-based screening could significantly reduce the incidence of these diseases.
Implementation Of A New, Inexpensive And High-throughput Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption / Ionization _ Time Of Flight Mass Spectrometry Test For Superior Detection Of Fragile X Syndrome In Targeted Diagnostics And Newborn Population Screening.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$254,175.00
Summary
Background: The Fragile X Syndrome (FXS) is the most common form of inherited intellectual disability. There are now a number of treatments for FXS. However, often this disorder is not clearly recognized. We have developed a novel FXS test that could resolve this issue. Our objective is to develop a commercial package that describes suitability of our test for diagnostic use. If successful this could potentially leading to improvement in the prognosis for FXS children through early treatment int ....Background: The Fragile X Syndrome (FXS) is the most common form of inherited intellectual disability. There are now a number of treatments for FXS. However, often this disorder is not clearly recognized. We have developed a novel FXS test that could resolve this issue. Our objective is to develop a commercial package that describes suitability of our test for diagnostic use. If successful this could potentially leading to improvement in the prognosis for FXS children through early treatment intervention.Read moreRead less
A Randomised Controlled Trial Of A Decision Aid For Prenatal Screening And Diagnosis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$269,625.00
Summary
Prenatal screening is becoming increasingly available to pregnant women in many countries, including Australia, to test for Down syndrome and other chromosomal disorders as well as neural tube defects. Almost half the pregnant women in Victoria are now undergoing prenatal screening. Inherent in all screening tests is the possibility of false positive or false negative results. More than 5% of all women undergoing prenatal screening are likely to receive false positive results and must decide whe ....Prenatal screening is becoming increasingly available to pregnant women in many countries, including Australia, to test for Down syndrome and other chromosomal disorders as well as neural tube defects. Almost half the pregnant women in Victoria are now undergoing prenatal screening. Inherent in all screening tests is the possibility of false positive or false negative results. More than 5% of all women undergoing prenatal screening are likely to receive false positive results and must decide whether to put the pregnancy at risk of miscarriage, or a possible pregnancy termination, as a result of the necessary follow-up invasive diagnostic test. Many women do not realise they may have to face this decision. Others are not aware that their baby may be born with undiagnosed problems even if they have the screening test. One aspect of care that is likely to have a crucial influence on women's experience of screening is how much they are informed about a test prior to undergoing it. Most women visit a GP early in the first trimester of pregnancy. This visit provides an opportunity for information provision about prenatal screening. Decision aids have been developed as adjuncts to practitioners' counselling to prepare patients for decision-making. In this project we will be developing a decision aid for women considering their prenatal screening options. A randomised controlled trial will compare the efficacy of a general educational pamphlet to that of a tailored decision aid in preparing women for decision-making about prenatal screening. A total of 500 women who are less than 11 weeks pregnant and are attending one of 50 GPs will be included. Self-report questionnaires will be used to assess women immediately after use of the educational materials and then again at 24 weeks of pregnancy. The impact of the educational materials on informed choice, decisional conflict, anxiety, depression and uptake of prenatal screening tests will be compared.Read moreRead less
Identification And Characterisation Of Novel FLT3-ITD Co-operating Mutations
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$659,245.00
Summary
Acute myeloid leukaemia is a cancer of the blood and bone marrow. We have identified new genes that act with the known oncogene FLT3-ITD in myeloid disease. We will examine in detail how these new genes contribute to the development of AML. This will aid in the development of new therapies for groups of AML patients with these mutations.