Annual Report 2015–2016
16243_nhmrc_annual_report_2015-16_web_2
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ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR<br />
LEAH COSGROVE<br />
CSIRO (FOOD AND NUTRITIONAL<br />
SCIENCES)<br />
DEVELOPMENT GRANT<br />
$542,260<br />
2011–13<br />
Photo: Russell Millard Photography<br />
SANGUINE ADVANCES IN DETECTING COLORECTAL CANCER<br />
Associate Professor Leah Cosgrove and her team have<br />
developed a simple blood test to diagnose colorectal<br />
cancer. A reliable, non-invasive blood test could augment<br />
the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program, either<br />
as an adjunct primary screen for those unable to do the<br />
stool test, or in triaging positive subjects to colonoscopy.<br />
This could help drive a significant reduction in colorectal<br />
cancer deaths in Australia.<br />
PART 1 Overview<br />
PROFESSOR DAVID CRAIK<br />
UNIVERSITY OF QUEENSLAND<br />
PROJECT GRANT<br />
$511,299<br />
2011–13<br />
Photo: Tony Phillips<br />
THE SCORPION KING: LIGHTING THE WAY TO DEFEATING<br />
BRAIN CANCER<br />
Professor David Craik and his team set out to make synthetic<br />
derivatives of a naturally occurring peptide, chlorotoxin, from<br />
the venom of a scorpion to use for brain tumour imaging.<br />
The work was based on a discovery by collaborator, Dr Jim<br />
Olson, that through attaching a dye to chlorotoxin it could<br />
be used to ‘light up’ tumours. This allows surgeons to pick<br />
up small amounts of cancerous tissue during surgery,<br />
reducing the risk of the tumour reoccurring.<br />
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR<br />
GORDON DOIG<br />
UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY<br />
PROJECT GRANT<br />
$845,052<br />
2010–13<br />
Photo: Grant Turner - MediaKoo<br />
PROTEIN: THE KEY TO IMPROVED KIDNEY FUNCTIONALITY<br />
Associate Professor Gordon Doig and his team showed<br />
that critically ill patients who received better nutrition were<br />
less likely to develop kidney injury. These findings represent<br />
an important first step towards global practice change<br />
and offers the potential to reduce the need for surgery,<br />
dialysis and transplantation.<br />
<strong>Annual</strong> <strong>Report</strong> of the National Health and Medical Research Council <strong>2015–2016</strong><br />
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