$20m in govt funding boosts childhood brain cancer research

The Australian Government has announced it is investing close to $20 million in funding to support groundbreaking national research that will give new hope to Australian children, adolescents and young adults with childhood brain cancers, including diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG).

Brain tumours are the most common solid tumour cancer among Australian children and are often fatal. DIPG is a rare and incredibly aggressive brain tumour that is almost exclusively diagnosed in children, with most children living for only nine months following diagnosis.

Three universities successfully applied for funding through the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) 2024 Paediatric Brain Cancer Research grants. The grant opportunity included $14 million to establish a national childhood brain cancer clinical trial consortium, and $6 million for early-stage clinical research to increase our understanding of childhood brain cancer and develop new treatments.

Monash University researchers will receive $2 million to work towards improving outcomes for children with high-grade gliomas, including DIPG, by developing new therapies which target specific genetic mutations. They were also awarded $14 million to establish CoACT-Brain Cancer: The Consortium for Australian Children’s Trials in Brain Cancer, which will ensure children with brain cancer can access the world’s most promising clinical trials.

The University of Newcastle has been awarded $2 million to use cutting-edge technologies to develop a treatment regimen to improve outcomes for children with diffuse midline glioma (DMG), of which DIPG is a subtype. Using technologies and expertise spanning biomedical science, chemistry, immunology, AI and clinical practice, the team will develop a transformative multimodal treatment regimen to provide patients with meaningful survival benefits.

The University of Western Australia (UWA) received $1.1 million to develop safer and more effective treatments for rare brain cancers in babies. This research will build on existing evidence which shows newer drugs are more likely to kill cancerous cells.

“Research is a key weapon in our unrelenting fight against DIPG and childhood brain cancer,” Butler said.

“We need bold and innovative research approaches to find treatments and a cure for DIPG and childhood brain cancer.

“Australia has some of the best researchers in the world in this field, and this funding from the Australian Government will mean children and their families will have improved access to the latest clinical trials.”

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