Making pancreatic cancer research count
Supporting pancreatic cancer patients
As part of our commitment to pancreatic cancer research, Cancer Council is providing financial support of $2.5 million over five years to the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) project.
Providing better support to people affected by cancer of the pancreas is another important component of the work being funded through Cancer Council’s STREP Grant.
The ICGC project is an ambitious biomedical and clinical research study involving some of the world’s leading scientists working together to better understand the genetic changes associated with 50 of the most common cancer types. Australia is part of an international consortium which is mapping the pancreatic cancer genome. This will allow the development of better ways of diagnosing this cancer earlier, providing individualised treatment, and hopefully understanding how to prevent this cancer in the future. The Australian scientific team is led by Professor Sean Grimmond from the Institute of Molecular Biosciences at the University of Queensland and Professor Andrew Biankin from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney. To facilitate the work of the Australian team, the NSW Pancreatic Cancer Network will be extended nationally. The Network was initially established through Cancer Council’s STREP program to improve the management of pancreatic cancer in NSW by bringing together experts in pancreatic cancer from different specialties.
Additional funding through Cancer Australia’s Building Cancer Support Networks Program Grant enabled Cancer Council NSW, in collaboration with the NSW Pancreatic Cancer Network, to undertake a research project to improve our understanding of the support and information needs of pancreatic cancer patients, their families and carers. The project involved analysing the support and information needs of those affected by this cancer and then developing and evaluating models of supportive care for them. The initial research identified significant unmet needs among this patient group. The data was then used to develop a range of support tools tailored to their specific needs. These include printed information booklets, multimedia tools, an online forum, telephone support groups, voluntary peer support and establishment of local community support groups. The support model developed during this project provides a valuable template that can be adapted for use with patient groups affected by other cancers and is readily transferable to supportive care programs outside NSW.
Cancer Council is providing financial support of $2.5 million over five years to the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) project.
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