Our Role & Impact

Enabling the discoveries that ensure families are happy and healthy

Our Role & Impact
  1. Our Role & Impact
  2. RESEARCH PROJECTS FUNDED THROUGH HMRI
  3. Developing new treatments for resistance in acute myeloid leukaemia

Developing new treatments for resistance in acute myeloid leukaemia

Treatment for the most common and deadly form of blood cancer (acute myeloid leukaemia) hasn’t changed in over 40 years. New treatments fail because leukaemia’s genes have a high propensity to mutate, causing rapid resistance to therapies. We have discovered that these gene mutations cause chemical-modifications to the cells defence systems. Unrestrained growth of these cancerous cells results in the production of excess reactive by-products that progressively change the cancer, making long-term treatment response and patient survival unlikely. This project will test whether targeting these chemical-modifications will be a more effective new treatment strategy.

AIMS

The overall aim is to develop and preclinically validate novel therapies for patients at diagnosis and following relapse. Therefore specific aims are to:

  1. Determine preclinical efficacy of novel drugs and combinations in models of AML
  2. Develop novel ROS diagnostic techniques to guide treatment selection
  3. Track changes in signalling in patients refractory to chemotherapies and targeted therapies 

This funding will specifically contribute to AIM 3.

Researchers 

Matt Dun

Research Area 
Cancer
Project type 
Project Grant
Year of funding 
2018