Professor Ilia Voskoboinik is a Group Leader in the Cancer Immunology Research at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. He has completed his PhD in Toxicology at RMIT-University in Melbourne, followed by postdoctoral training in Karolinska Institute (Stockholm, Sweden) and The University of Melbourne (Department of Genetics).

Ilia has worked on the biology of cytotoxic lymphocytes for the last 20 years, and is now recognised as an international leader in this field. Through his interdisciplinary approach to science, he has resolved many fundamental questions about cytotoxic lymphocyte effector function – the basis of immune surveillance and immunotherapeutic strategies – and defined novel aspects of immune-mediated diseases.

His work has enhanced the understanding of host/pathogen interactions and formulated novel diagnostic/therapeutic strategies for haematologic and oncologic diseases, ultimately changing the way clinicians provide life-saving recommendations on diagnosis and management of primary immunodeficiencies that relate to cytotoxic lymphocyte dysfunction. In recognition of these achievements, he has been awarded grants and fellowships, published close to 100 papers, and admitted to the Fellowship of the Faculty of Science of the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia.