Welcome to the March edition of Alliance.
I recognise the current challenges in the global environment impacting many of our medical research colleagues overseas, and acknowledge this plays on the minds of our own community. But closer to home, there is still much cause for optimism.
We are looking forward this month to a showcase event on March 31 for our Data Connect program, which will be attended by the Minister for Health, The Hon Mary-Anne Thomas MP. We are delighted to welcome Minister Thomas back after she launched Data Connect in 2023. In this edition of Alliance, you can read about how data from this project has been used to inform the Victorian Integrated Cancer Services’ (VICS) Optimal Care Summits. This partnership represents two Victorian Government-funded parties working synergistically to solve problems related to cancer, by bringing a pre-diagnostic picture to cancer experts and clinicians in the state. It’s creating vital dialogue, resolutions and pathways forward towards improved care for cancer patients. Data is a key component of the Victorian Cancer Plan and we look forward to supporting this with the established platforms and expertise the VCCC Alliance can bring to the table.
Our National Regional Cancer Forums, which received grant funding from the Australian Government under the Cancer Patient Support Program, launched on February 27 with more than 500 people registered to attend the first webinar. The forum discussed the regional impacts of the Australian Cancer Plan with speakers from Cancer Australia. We’re grateful to Cancer Australia for supporting the event in this way. Congratulations to our very hardworking VCCC Alliance Education team for organising and facilitating this event, with the next webinar scheduled for March 27.
Our alliance had a presence at the 2025 Cancer Survivorship Conference, 6-7 March. This is hosted by the Clinical Oncology Society of Australia (COSA) in partnership with VCCC Alliance, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and Flinders University. Congratulations to the team on their efforts and a hugely successful event, including Director of the Australian Cancer Survivorship Centre Prof Michael Jefford, and the VCCC Alliance Education team, including Associate Director Kyleigh Smith who facilitated a session and is involved every year in the planning of the event. This year, Prof Jennifer Philip also represented the alliance on the organising committee. It was great to see so many of our members involved!
Michelle Barrett, Peter Giannoukas and Kyleigh Smith at the Survivorship Conference
I was thrilled to see the announcement of ongoing support from the Federal Government for the world-leading ZERO Childhood Cancer Program that brings state-of-the-art personalised medicine and genomics to all children diagnosed with cancer across Australia. For the first time there will also be funding for adolescents and young adults diagnosed with cancer, a patient population with very important needs. The VCCC Alliance looks forward to assisting our members in the development of this new initiative.
Congratulations to all of those across our member organisations who were successful in their NHMRC Investigator Grant applications. These include A/Prof Kalinda Griffiths, VCCC Alliance Research and Education Lead, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health and Director, Poche SA+NT, Flinders University, supported to build scholarship across Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health data, governance, and measurement. Two of our Research and Education Leads from Peter Mac, Prof Sherene Loi and Prof Jeannie Tie, were also successful. I was particularly pleased to see so many colleagues successful across the state. Victoria received $230M of the $422M awarded, while University of Melbourne, Monash University, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and WEHI received $191M of the $422M awarded.
Congratulations to all the successful Victorian recipients with a total of 17 grants awarded for cancer research.
Prof Grant McArthur AO
Chief Executive Officer
