Breakthrough drugs and novel treatments are the public face of cancer research. Behind them is less visible but equally vital work: the data infrastructure that enables laboratory discoveries to reach patients. At Hunter Medical Research Institute, Dr. Patrick Skippen’s team builds these systems.
“People sometimes think of cancer research as linear,” Dr Skippen says. “Scientist has breakthrough, runs trial, helps patients. But there’s a lot of work that happens in between.”
Dr Skippen leads HMRI’s Data Management and Health Informatics team. Without proper data systems and trial coordination, promising discoveries often stall before reaching patients. His team ensures that years of laboratory research can move safely and effectively into clinical trials.
In 2022, HMRI began partnering with the Australian and New Zealand Urogenital and Prostate Cancer Trials Group ANZUP, a collaboration that now spans six clinical trials investigating treatments for prostate and testicular cancers.
The partnership works because ANZUP doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel each time: HMRI provides database development, statistical analysis, trial coordination. The trials, like ANZadapt, can focus on their scientific questions rather than drowning in logistics.
“We have found all HMRI teams to be proactive, efficient, appropriately focused on timelines, and a pleasure to work with,” ANZUP noted in a recent testimonial.
For Dr Skippen, these partnerships improve efficiency across the board. “When trial groups don’t have to rebuild systems from scratch, they can move faster,” he says. “That matters because every delay means patients wait longer for potentially better treatments.“
HMRI has provided ongoing consultation to the GI Cancer Trials for many years. Recently, the Data Management and Health Informatics team developed the international database for the STOPNET trial, which examines quality of life outcomes for people living with neuroendocrine tumours. These rare, often slow-growing cancers can leave patients managing uncertainty for extended periods, and the research acknowledges that surviving cancer and maintaining quality of life after cancer represent distinct clinical challenges.
“These projects remind us that cancer care extends beyond treatment,” Dr Skippen says. “Data infrastructure and digital health tools can meaningfully improve how people recover and live after cancer, and that’s equally important to the overall patient experience.“
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