Australia on the cusp of new, tailor-made range of cancer treatments

“I think the fact that we have all of the equipment, all of the expertise under one roof… I really don’t know if there is anything else like this. We really have the potential to make a real impact here.”

Australia is on the cusp of new range of cancer treatments that are hyper targeted, and tailor made for each patient.

And AIBN researchers like Dr Gayathri Ediriweera are leading the charge.

Gayathri is one of four founding postdoc appointments to The Australian Research Council (ARC) hub for Advanced Manufacture of Targeted Radiopharmaceuticals (AMTAR), a brand new hub led by 澳大利亚昆士兰大学 that will be officially launched next week.

By providing the expertise and cutting edge equipment, AMTAR’s researchers are able to give life to new ideas and products, providing a one stop shop for industry and government partners looking to make their mark in the emerging field of radiopharmaceuticals.

Partnered with industry collaborator Clarity Pharmaceuticals , Gayathri has been developing new tools that improve patient care through precise diagnosis and effective treatment.

She says a passion for fundamental research and curiosity for translation has been crucial as she navigates the space between academia and industry.

“I’ve always liked working in the academic field, but it is also crucial for us at AMTAR to know how industry works and how we can take research and commercialise it,” Gayathri says.

“What I have found as I have progressed at AIBN and become a part of AMTAR is that collaborations between academia and industry can be crucial to getting things out of the lab and helping people.”

As a cancer therapy, radiopharmaceuticals are:

a) Hyper targeted to the site of a tumour

b) Tailor made for each individual patient

c) Designed to spare patients from the usual harsh side-effects associated with chemotherapy and radiotherapy

For Gayathri, AMTAR represents an opportunity for Australia to put a marker down and lead the world in this lucrative new field.

“Radiopharmaceuticals are one of the most exciting fields of drug delivery,” she says.

“We’re talking about delivering powerful radioisotopes directly to the site of a cancer.

“There are not many places you would be able to develop these tools. It’s exciting that we get to be a part of that here.”.