University of Adelaide - Impact of Giving 2022 - Flipbook - Page 4
Impact of Giving
The future of
cancer research
With support from a
diverse community
of foundations and
donors, Professor Lisa
Butler’s multidisciplinary
research team is
creating new tools
for the diagnosis
and management
of prostate cancer.
Professor Lisa Butler explained that
prostate cancer is the most common
cancer that affects Australian men.
“My team and I are trying to develop
tools that will help men and their doctors
make decisions about their treatment
once the diagnosis has been made.”
Professor Butler’s research program
spans the entire prostate cancer
journey, covering tools for diagnosis
and the development of new
therapies for late-stage cancers.
“Unfortunately, despite the surgery
and interventions that are available,
some men will experience a relapse
of their cancer in the future, and once
that happens the disease is generally
incurable,” said Professor Butler.
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means the team can gain meaningful
information from clinical tumours
compared to the more traditional
artificial systems in the laboratory.
“We’re also lucky to have a strong
consumer support group that we work
with regularly, where we can hear
from prostate cancer survivors about
their perspectives on our projects.
“They speak to us about their
experiences and support our staff and
students in learning more about the
prostate cancer patient journey.”
While Professor Butler’s research receives
some funding from the government,
central to this important work is financial
support from foundations and individual
donors. Grants from donors have enabled
the purchase of equipment, and the
Lions Club of Adelaide is providing
scholarships for honours students.
“This year we have also
received a gift from
a donor, David Beale,
who has committed to
supporting three PhD
students at SAiGENCI
over the next five years,
which is incredible.”
“My group is developing new therapies
that can tackle advanced metastatic
prostate cancer that’s spread
throughout the body and give patients
more options in that late stage.”
“Undertaking honours and PhD studies
can be very challenging, and having these
scholarships means the students can
focus on their research without needing
to work to support themselves,” she said.
Professor Butler’s team takes a unique
approach to this problem by conducting
research with prostate cancer samples
donated by patients in South Australia
who have elected to support research.
Using these samples in their research
The funding that Professor Butler’s group
receives is essential and supports the
work of a medical research team that
is truly patient-centred – working with
prostate cancer survivors to support them
through every stage of their journey.
About SAiGENCI
SAiGENCI (South Australian
immunoGENomics Cancer
Institute) is creating the
state’s most advanced cancer
discovery hub that will benefit
patients with cancer, their
families, and everyone who has
been impacted by cancer.
“Cancer is the competition, and
we can only control cancer if
we all work together as a team.
Researchers cannot do this alone.
We need industry and government
collaborators, consumer
advocates, supporters and donors
– everyone coming together to
fight cancer.” – Professor Chris
Sweeney, SAiGENCI Director.