OCRF grants to drive next-gen ovarian cancer breakthroughs
20 March 2025
Peter Mac researchers Dale Garsed and Kylie Gorringe have been awarded Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation (OCRF) grants as they look to unlock the next generation of cancer treatments.
Dr Garsed will study the immune response in long-term survivors of high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC) and aims to discover the secrets behind why some patients beat the odds and survive this aggressive cancer for over a decade.
HGSC is known for its high mortality rate, but around 15 per cent of patients defy these statistics, living 10 years or more after treatment. Dr Garsed’s research focuses particularly on a less-explored component of the immune system, antibody-producing B cells, in these patients.
"Most researchers concentrate on killer T cells, which directly attack tumour cells," Dr Garsed explained.
"Our team is delving into the role of B cells, which produce antibodies that can bind to tumour cells, potentially marking them for destruction by other immune cells. We believe that the antibodies produced by long-term survivors may provide a clue as to how some patients have exceptional immune responses to their cancer, and could be harnessed to develop new therapies.
"This grant will enable us to characterise antibodies from long-term survivors with the potential to become novel treatments for patients with HGSC, potentially saving many more lives in the future."
Dr Garsed's innovative approach could lead to significant advancements in the treatment of HGSC, offering new hope for patients battling this challenging disease.
Associate Professor Gorringe’s project will develop new treatments for mucinous ovarian carcinoma (MOC), a rare and challenging type of ovarian cancer. This research holds the promise of bringing effective treatments to MOC patients, who currently have limited options once the disease spreads.
MOC primarily affects younger women and differs significantly from other ovarian cancer types. While surgery can be successful if the tumour is detected early, standard chemotherapy often fails when the cancer progresses. Associate Professor Gorringe’s research aims to tackle this urgent need by exploring proteins specifically found in MOC tumours, with a focus on those located on the surface of cancer cells.
"By targeting proteins on the surface of MOC cells, we can identify potential therapies that are more effective and precise," she said. "These proteins are accessible and make excellent targets for treatment.
"Our goal is to find treatments that are already available but have not been used for MOC. This approach could fast-track the availability of new, effective therapies for MOC patients.
"If successful, this will be a game-changer, giving MOC patients access to treatments that actually work.”
These Peter Mac projects are two of eight funded by the OCRF in their largest-ever distribution of $3.5 million dedicated to cutting-edge ovarian cancer research. The current average five-year survival rate for women diagnosed with ovarian cancer is just 49 per cent, and this drops to 29 per cent for women diagnosed at an advanced stage.