New grants to combat fertility loss and prostate cancer spread
04 February 2025
Two innovative research projects led by Peter Mac researchers Dr Wanda Cui and Professor Belinda Parker have been awarded funding by Cancer Council Victoria.
Dr Cui’s research project aims to address the impact of immunotherapy on fertility, a critical gap in cancer treatment. While immunotherapy has proven to be a game-changer in treating cancers like melanoma, offering patients a chance at long-term survival, it can also have devastating effects on fertility.
Previous studies in mice have shown that immunotherapy can cause severe damage to the ovaries, but little is known about how it affects human ovaries and testes.
“We know that immunotherapy has revolutionised cancer treatment and significantly increased survival rates for many patients,” Dr Cui said.
“However, its impact on fertility, and ovarian and testicular function is unknown. We know that infertility, and the long term health complications of early menopause and low testosterone is a major concern, especially for younger patients, regardless of if they wish to have children after treatment
“Our study will provide the first human data on how immunotherapy affects ovarian and testicular function, helping us better understand the risks and provide patients with crucial information about their reproductive health.”
Dr Cui’s project will study the ovarian and testicular function of 80 people with melanoma undergoing immunotherapy treatment. By focusing on this overlooked aspect of treatment, the research could provide invaluable insights to both male and female patients, especially as immunotherapy continues to be used in an increasing number of cancer treatments.
Professor Belinda Parker’s project is tackling one of the most severe complications of prostate cancer, when it spreads to the bones.
Bone metastasis is a major contributor to the morbidity and mortality of prostate cancer patients, and Professor Parker’s research seeks to develop new ways to target and treat these aggressive cancers.
“Bone metastasis is one of the most challenging and painful aspects of prostate cancer, and it can drastically reduce a patient’s quality of life,” Professor Parker said.
“By using a model that grows cancer cells on a bone scaffold, we can test strategies to make cancer cells more vulnerable to treatments, including using the body’s own immune system to fight them.”
Parker’s team has created an innovative model that allows prostate cancer from patients with bone metastases to be grown on a cow bone scaffold, mimicking the bone environment where the cancer has spread.
Using this model, the team aims to better understand how immune cells can be harnessed to target and destroy cancer cells within the bone.
Additionally, they will explore using a radiation-tagged antibody that binds to a specific protein abundant in bone cancer cells, offering a new approach to seek out and destroy bone metastases.
“Together, these approaches could offer an alternate strategy for personalised treatment for bone metastasis, ultimately improving survival rates for patients,” Professor Parker added.
The Cancer Council Victoria Grants-in-Aid programs aims to fund high quality research focused on discovering and improving prevention, detection, treatment, and care for people affected by cancer.