THERAPIES FOR CHRONIC MYELOID LEUKAEMIA
Professor Tim Hughes
Clinical Director Precision Cancer Medicine Theme, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI)
& Consultant Haematologist, Royal Adelaide Hospital, South Australia
RESEARCHER PROFILE (Filmed in Adelaide, South Australia | December 2024)
Professor Tim Hughes is the Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia Group Leader at SAHMRI, Clinical Director in the Precision Cancer Medicine Theme at SAHMRI and Consultant Haematologist in the Division of Haematology at SA Pathology and at the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
He is also Inaugural Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences (AAHMS) and Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science.
Professor Hughes is an international expert in the biology and treatment of leukaemia. He led the establishment of the molecular response criteria that are used world-wide to measure response in chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) and has led many of the key Global and National trials. His group has successfully developed predictive bioassays and molecular targets that influence the way CML patients are managed world-wide. He has published over 350 papers that have been cited over 65,000 times.
He has been recognised for his achievements with several national awards including the GSK Award for Research Excellence in 2017 for pioneering the use of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and the Ramaciotti Medal for Excellence in Biomedical Research in 2019. He was also awarded the International CML Foundation Goldman Prize in 2017 for lifetime contributions to improving outcomes for patients with CML.
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Investigating the benefits of donor human milk for preterm infants
Together, SAHMRI and Lifeblood are leading a consortium to revolutionise the way human milk, and novel products made from human milk, are used as nutritional and medical interventions to improve health outcomes in vulnerable infants, but with potential application for a diverse range of medical indications.
Currently, babies who are born early preterm – before 32 weeks – are given donor milk when their own mother’s milk is not available or in short supply. Whether donor milk is beneficial for babies born just a few weeks early is unclear, as very little research has been undertaken with these babies.
The GIFT Trial will soon commence as an investigation between SAHMRI, the University of Adelaide, the Red Cross Lifeblood Milk Bank conducted at five sites across three states in Australia.
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Paramedics in the Community
Dr Brendan Shannon is a registered paramedic and Head of Postgraduate Programs and Deputy Head of Department of Paramedicine at Monash University.
Brendan has a keen research interest in alternative care pathways, non-transport, referral services, paramedic practitioners and community paramedicine. His Doctoral research focused on investigating the experiences of health services when implementing alternative care pathways.
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Touched by bowel cancer and chasing science outcomes
Dr Josephine Wright is a Senior Research Fellow in the Gut Cancer group. She has been developing a translational network of labs, hospitals and clinics to enable validation of new approaches to prevent and treat colorectal and gastric cancer. Her key focus is studying human tumour organoids to better personalise therapy in cancer.
