LIVER CANCER & PATIENT-DERIVED TUMOUR ORGANOIDS
With
Dr Benjamin Dwyer,
Senior Research Fellow &
Director, Western Australian Organioid Innovation Hub,
Curtin Medical Research Institute,
Curtin University, Western Australia
RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Perth, Western Australia | February 2026
Dr Benjamin Dwyer is a translational cancer researcher driven by a clear purpose: to ensure discoveries made in the laboratory genuinely improve outcomes for patients.
Based at Curtin University, he established and now leads the organoid platform within the Liver Cancer Collaborative and directs the WA Organoid Innovation Hub, working at the intersection of biology, medicine and biotechnology to accelerate new treatments for liver cancer.
After completing his PhD in Perth, Dr Dwyer joined the world-leading liver research group of Prof Stuart Forbes at the University of Edinburgh, where he contributed to research spanning fundamental biology, clinical trials and commercial translation. He helped define how cholangiocarcinoma crosstalk with macrophages establishes a protective environment. In parallel, he was closely involved in the development of macrophage cell therapy for cirrhosis as part of the management team of the MATCH trials, and established novel, GMP-compatible methods to engineer and cryopreserve therapeutic macrophages, foundational methods for the commercial development of macrophage therapy. He was part of the founding team of a biotechnology spinout created to translate this work, and the therapeutic strategy built on those early methods is now progressing through Phase 1 clinical testing. Seeing principles he helped establish move from bench to bedside has been a defining milestone in his career.
Today, as part of the Liver Cancer Collaborative his research focuses on building patient-derived “mini tumours” for drug development that better predict treatment response, narrowing the gap between laboratory models and real patient outcomes.
COLLABORATIONS WITH:
Perkins Cancer Biobank, Australian Centre for RNA Therapeutics in Cancer, UWA, WA Data Science Innovation Hub, Murdoch University, Epichem, Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation Australia WEHI National Drug Discovery Centre, Inventia Life Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS), University of Calgary
FUNDING FROM:
Department of Health WA FHRI Fund, Cancer Research Trust, Gastroenterological Society of Australia (GESA), Ian Potter Foundation, AMMF- The Cholangiocarcinoma Charity,
Source: Supplied and adapted
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2527-5417
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Role of Community Paramedicine in Non-Emergency Presentations
Dr Robbie King is a Lecturer in paramedicine and researcher at the Australian Catholic University (ACU) Brisbane. He also continues to provide clinical care as a registered paramedic for community members served by a jurisdictional ambulance service. Dr King has gained significant experience working in an advanced practice, community paramedic style role, holding expert clinical insight into the nuances of paramedic-led community-based healthcare for non-emergency presentations. This often involves adopting a biopsychosocial approach, rather than following the biomedical model more associated with emergency medicine and paramedic culture.
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Interventions for improving outcomes of children who are deaf or hard of hearing
Professor Teresa Ching is a Conjoint Professor at NextSense Institute and Macquarie University, and an Honorary Professor at the University of Queensland in Australia. Her current research focuses on devising culturally sensitive practices in early detection and intervention to maximise children’s outcomes. Working with international colleagues, her current research is also directed towards developing global guidelines and recommendations for hearing screening beyond the newborn period, so that all children can benefit from early detection and intervention. The ultimate goal is to attain equity of care and outcomes for all children with hearing difficulties.
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Better biomarkers for predicting the incidence of having atherosclerosis and heart attack
Assoc Prof Bursill is a vascular biologist with interests and expertise in vascular inflammation, atherosclerosis and angiogenesis. She completed her PhD at The University of Adelaide in lipid metabolism then headed to Oxford University for five years to undergo a postdoctoral post in the Departments of Cardiovascular Medicine and Pathology. Her postdoctoral time triggered her interest in the mechanisms that cause atherosclerosis and in particular the role of small inflammatory proteins called chemokines.
