Australian Brain Cancer Mission
An Australian initiative to lead the world in a $124 million mission to beat brain cancer, double survival rates in ten years, and improve patients’ quality of life.
What is the Australian Brain Cancer Mission?
The ‘Australian Brain Cancer Mission’ is a $124 million plan to double brain cancer survival in ten years, and is the result of a collaboration between Cure Brain Cancer Foundation, the Federal Government, and Minderoo Foundation’s Eliminate Cancer Initiative, in consultation with the nation’s best research minds.
Projects we're funding in the Australian Brain Cancer Mission
A clinical trial using immunotherapy for patients with recurrent brain cancer or rare types of gliomas
Principal Investigator: A/Prof Mustafa Khasraw
Administering Institution: University of Sydney
Grant amount: $500,000.00
A pilot study into nivolumab in paediatric patients with hypermutant cancers
Principal Investigator: A/Prof David Ziegler
Administering Institution: Children's Cancer Institute
Grant amount: $86,796.00
Imaging and molecular determinants of response to chemoradiation in glioblastoma
Principal Investigator: Prof Andrew Scott
Administering Institution: La Trobe University
Grant amount: $200,000.00
Investigation into epigenetics and new therapeutic strategy in ATRX mutated gliomas
Principal Investigator: A/Prof Lee Wong
Administering Institution: Monash University
Grant amount: $200,000.00
Australasian participation in the international BIOMEDE (Biological Medicine for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma Eradication) study
Principal Investigator: Dr Geoffery McCowage
Administering Institution: Monash University
Grant amount: $188,750.00
GBM AGILE Trial
Principal Investigator: Prof Timothy Cloughesy
Administering Institution: Global Coalition for Adaptive Research
Grant amount: $1,000,000.00
A national brain-organoid based high-throughput platform for personalised drug and genetic screening in glioblastoma
Principal Investigator: Dr Guillermo Gomez
Administering Institution: University of South Australia
Grant amount: $400,000.00
Evaluation of Novel
Therapies for Brain Cancer and Generation and Characterisation of Recurrent
Brain Cancer Models
Principal Investigator: Dr Bryan Day
Administering Institution: QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute
Grant amount: $400,000.00
Determining how FUBP1
drives Oligodendroglioma to develop better treatments for primary brain cancer
Principal Investigator: Dr Leonie Quinn
Administering Institution: The Australian National University
Grant amount: $200,000.00
Sensitising brain cancer to conventional treatment using novel drugs
Principal Investigator: A/Prof Nick Gottardo
Administering Institution: Telethon Kids Institute
Grant amount: $200,000.00
Resetting the Tumour
Microenvironment to Improve Glioblastoma Immunotherapy
Principal Investigator: Dr Roberta Mazzieri
Administration Institution: The University of Queensland
Grant amount: $200,000.00
Defining the anti-tumour efficacy of CDK4/6 inhibitors in combination with chemotherapy and possible mechanisms of resistance in murine and patient derived xenograph models of Medulloblastoma
Principal Investigator: Dr Laura Genovesi
Administration Institution: The University of Queensland
Grant amount: $345,000.00
Designing Novel Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cell Therapies for the Treatment of Paediatric and Adult Gliomas
Principal Investigator: Dr Ryan Cross
Administration Institution: The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research
Grant amount: $345,000.00
How will it increase survival?
The Mission aims to rapidly increase survival by bolstering patients’ access to clinical trials and accelerating the discovery of new therapies by expanding research platforms and technologies, and equipping researchers with the best tools and infrastructure.
Where will the funding come from?
The Australian Brain Cancer Mission will launch with an initial collaboration comprising $50 million from the Australian Government, a $20 million commitment from Cure Brain Cancer Foundation, and $10 million from Minderoo Foundation's Eliminate Cancer Initiative.
The funding starts right now, with Cure Brain Cancer Foundation committing $1 million to ensure Australians will be among the first to benefit from GBM AGILE - a revolutionary new system to test potential brain cancer therapies and deliver better treatments faster.

What will the Australian Brain Cancer Mission mean for people living with brain cancer?
A key objective of the Australian Brain Cancer Mission is to ensure every patient, adult and child in Australia has the opportunity to participate in clinical trials.
This
will be done by investing in more clinical trials, new discovery work, further
international collaborations, expanding research platforms and technologies,
and fostering the talent of our researchers.
What was Cure Brain Cancer Foundation's role in the creation of the Australian Brain Cancer Mission?
The establishment of the Australian Brain Cancer Mission follows a sustained advocacy campaign by Cure Brain Cancer Foundation to make brain cancer a national priority, with a greater share of government focus and funding for the “forgotten cancer”.
It was created with the help of Cure Brian Cancer Foundation, in consultation with the nation’s best research minds, following a major roundtable meeting, hosted by Minister for Health, Greg Hunt MP, in August, 2017.
How you can help
You can help by donating, fundraising, and advocating to help fund Cure Brain Cancer Foundation's commitment to the Australian Brain Cancer Mission. Click here to help us change the game.
“The long road to a cure just got shorter with this game-changer for people with brain cancer.” Michelle Stewart, CEO, Cure Brain Cancer Foundation
Australian Brain Cancer Mission news