NHMRC grant announcements

Several SCS staff were awarded National Health and Medical Research Council grants. Congratulations to everyone involved.

Investigator Grants

• Professor Stuart Hooper from our Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology for his work on assisting infants transition at birth.
• Dr Gareth Gregory for his work on improving outcomes for patients with central nervous system lymphoma.
• Dr Jessica Biesiekierski for her work on changing the way diet is used in gut disorders.
• Associate Professor Daniel Lorber Rolnik for his work in preventing pre-eclampsia.

Ideas Grants

• Professor David Nikolic-Paterson for his work preventing hypoperfusion-induced acute kidney injury.
• Dr Shayanti Mukherjee for her work transforming treatment for pelvic organ prolapse with nanotechnology.

Pictured: L-R: Top row - Jessica Biesiekierski, Gareth Gregory, Stuart Hooper Bottom row - Shayanti Mukherjee, David Nikolic-Paterson, Daniel Lorber Rolnik

See here for a full list list of Investigator grants winners.

See here for a full list of Ideas grants winners.

Monash research to benefit patients with aggressive lymphoma

Dr Gareth Gregory

Monash researcher and haematologist Dr Gareth Gregory has been awarded a prestigious Sylvia and Charles Viertel Charitable Foundation Clinical Investigator Award to further his research into aggressive lymphoma. 

International award and fellowship for Monash haematologist will improve outcomes for lymphoma patients

Dr Gareth Gregory

Monash haematologist Dr Gareth Gregory has been recognised as an international expert in aggressive lymphoma, recently receiving the European Hematology Association Clinical Research Training in Hematology Award.

Following a highly competitive application process, Dr Gregory was one of only 15 international early career academic haematologists selected who demonstrated success in clinical research.  Only two were awarded to recipients outside Europe.

The Award consists of three workshops in Europe over the next nine months, where Dr Gregory will network with world-leading haematologist clinician-researchers to hone clinical trial design and execution.

“I have a passion for translational research in order to improve outcomes for patients afflicted by blood cancer,” Dr Gregory said.

“My interest in this field has led to a number of clinical and preclinical projects, including my PhD research in which I identified novel oncogenic dependencies of aggressive lymphoma.”

“Recent translation of my findings has led to an international phase I clinical trial of new therapies at the Monash Health Translation Precinct (MHTP) to treat aggressive lymphoma.”

This award provides Dr Gregory with the opportunity to learn from global leaders in the haematology research community, with the ultimate aim of creating successful investigator-initiated clinical trials to run from the MHTP to benefit Australian patients.

In further success, Dr Gregory has also been awarded the School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health (SCS) Early Career Practitioner Fellowship for 2018.

“This fellowship bridges the difficult divide between award of a PhD and eligibility for other early career funding opportunities,” Dr Gregory said.

“The fellowship will enable me to consolidate my role as a clinician-researcher within the MHTP and to create a comprehensive lymphoma translational research group to complement the expanding haematology and oncology presence in the precinct.”

“I am very excited to be working alongside leading researchers in this area including Professors Segalov and Southey and Associate Professors Shortt and Azad.”

Dr Gregory said all of these opportunities are the result of the vision to expand haematology clinical and research activities within Monash Health and Monash University and none would have been possible without the personal mentorship from Unit Head, Professor Stephen Opat, and his PhD supervisor Associate Professor Jake Shortt. 

“I am very excited for the continued growth of these services and the bright future for haematology research within the Monash network.”

Failure to achieve early disease response is associated with inferior survival in patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma

Pasquale Fedele, George Grigoriadis et al. published in the British Journal of Haematology.

Read article here.

Genomic characterisation of Eμ-Myc mouse lymphomas identifies Bcor as a Myc co-operative tumour-suppressor gene

Jake Shortt et al. published in Nature Communications.

Read article here.

Gareth Gregory on ABC news

Video link

Haematologist Dr Gareth Gregory on ABC TV news, discussing his world first clinical trial to treat lymphoma patients.  Watch video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fszaavKIM0Q&t=6s

First patient overnight stay at MHTP Clinial Trials Centre

Mr Rudy Van Ekeren with
Ms Cheryl Coleman

The Clinical Trials Centre at the Monash Health Translation Precinct (MHTP) welcomed their first overnight patient earlier this month.

Mr Rudy Van Ekeren is the second aggressive B-cell lymphoma patient in Australia—and only third in the world—to receive a novel epigenetic therapy as part of an anti-lymphoma clinical trial.  The study is being led by Monash University researcher and Monash Health haematologist Dr Gareth Gregory.

“I’ve been in hospitals around the world and have never seen facilities like this,” said Rudy.

For the first cycle of his trial, Rudy needed to have ten hours of pre-hydration before starting his treatment.

“We needed him here overnight so we could start his treatment in the morning,” said MHTP Clinical Trials Centre (CTC) Manager Ms Cheryl Coleman.  

“Once Rudy started his treatment, we began our observations and a series of blood tests looking for tumour lysis syndrome to make sure the tumour wasn’t breaking down in a dangerous manner.”

Rudy stayed for a second night in the CTC for further observations.

According to Early Phase Drug Trials Operations Manager Ms Cheryl-Ann Hawkins, the first overnight patient in the CTC marks the beginning of a new service and a new era.

“While there are other healthy volunteer clinical trials units in Australia, our CTC is unique in that it offers services across all diseases and phases in unhealthy patients,” said Ms Hawkins.

Ms Coleman said that one of the biggest advantages of the CTC is the Trial Units no longer have to negotiate for a public hospital bed.

“When following a clinical trial protocol, we may only have 28 days for a screening period, and patients must be treated at Day 0 or Day 1,” said Ms Coleman.

“When you’re competing for a public hospital bed in a busy ward, there can often be a delay of a day or two and there’s a chance of losing the patient to the trial.”

“When patients come to our dedicated Centre we can guarantee they’re looked after according to the protocol requirements. Data is collected and recorded at the required time points.”

Ms Coleman said the CTC is not only more attractive to sponsors by providing timely and accurate data but also allows trial units to participate in new trials they would not have been able to consider previously.

For patient Rudy, he was happy to have all the attention of the night shift staff.

“I couldn’t wish for any better treatment, and I was very happy having my wife stay overnight in the room to support me,” he said.

The unique and dedicated Clinical Trials Centre is an Australian first in the public sector, supporting clinical trials from Phase 1 to Phase 4—from ‘first in human’ to primary health trials.

Monash part of world-first clinical trial for lymphoma patients

Mr Potter with Dr Gareth Gregory in the MHTP
Clinical Trials Centre

A novel therapy for aggressive lymphoma is being tested in a world-first clinical trial at the Monash Health Translation Precinct (MHTP).

In early 2015, researchers at Monash University and Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre showed the novel anti-lymphoma therapy is remarkably effective against one of the most aggressive B-cell lymphomas in animal models.

Mr George Potter is the first aggressive B-cell lymphoma patient in Australia—and only second in the world—to receive the new treatment, a drug called dinaciclib, a type of epigenetic therapy that can alter the way a cancer cell reads its own abnormal DNA.

"Certain B-cell lymphomas depend on a cancer causing gene called ‘Myc',” said lead researcher and Monash Health haematologist Dr Gareth Gregory.

"Patients with aggressive lymphoma usually respond well to initial chemotherapy.  Unfortunately, those that relapse or are resistant to upfront therapy have a poor response to further therapies and ultimately have a poor prognosis."

"In the case of aggressive lymphoma, dinaciclib effectively turns off genes that Myc is activating and then kills the cells, including those resistant to conventional chemotherapy," said Dr Gregory.

Dr Gregory and Head of Haematology Research at the School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health (SCS) Associate Professor Jake Shortt have worked on this type of lymphoma for more than seven years and have tested numerous novel and conventional therapies.

"In animal models, dinaciclib is the most effective treatment we have seen to date by a long way," said Associate Professor Shortt. 

"We've even seen results in animal models that have led to some cures—this is something we have never seen before."

Mr Potter is receiving his treatment at the newly opened Clinical Trials Centre at MHTP.

“I am thrilled and very grateful to be part of this trial,” said Mr Potter.

Dr Gregory said initial results from the clinical trial will be available after two to three months of treatment, but overall assessment will take approximately two years.

“We are quite hopeful this therapy will prolong life and provide durable remissions,” added Dr Gregory.

Lymphomas are the most common form of haematological or blood cancer in Australia, and the sixth most common form of cancer overall.  The incidence of lymphomas has more than doubled over the past 20 years and is continuing to rise, for no known reason.