If fighting cancer is a race against time, researchers are up against it with brain cancer, where University of Wollongong expert Dr Moeava Tehei said there had been little improvement in the five-year survival rate for 20 years.
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But the UOW team is hopeful a $100,000 anonymous donation will help fast-track its research into how treatment can address the risk of side effects.
The money will go to the UOW Centre for Medical Radiation Physics (CMRP), aimed at improving patients' quality of life and survival rates, CMRP Targeted Nano-therapies head Dr Moeava Tehei said.
They are investigating ways to spare healthy brain tissue while selectively targeting the cancer cells, and reduce the number of radiation treatments.
"Unlike other cancers, there has been almost no improvement in the five-year survival rate of brain cancer patients in the past 20 years," Dr Tehei said.
"Unfortunately, all current treatments are limited in progress by adverse cognitive and somatic side effects. These increased risks are even higher in children when the cancer occurs before intellectual and physical development is completed.
"A multidisciplinary approach is essential to address the limitations in brain cancer treatment and attack the disease simultaneously on several fronts.
"Without this generous gift, our research team would need at least twice as long to complete the research project goals. This support will help us give brain cancer patients not only a brighter future, but also a better quality of life."
The research involves developing new treatment options that could reduce the total number of radiation treatments, improve healthy tissue recovery after treatment, and reduce cognitive and physical side effects.
UOW School of Physics head Professor Michael Perch said it was hoped the funding could help fast-track work towards clinical trials.
"The research our team has performed to date is producing astonishing results, but limited funding has restricted our progress in developing the new knowledge we have revealed in our pilot studies," he said.
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