HARNESSING GENOMICS TO OVERCOME HEALTH CHALLENGES
Delve into the transformative world of genomics and its profound impact on healthcare. Leading researchers are leveraging genomics to tackle complex health issues in cancer, inherited eye disease, and gynecological disorders.
Discover how next-generation sequencing is revolutionising research and patient care, ushering in the era of precision medicine with personalised, targeted, and effective treatments, moving beyond traditional methods.
Recently funded projects under The Advanced Genomics Collaboration (TAGC) are advancing genomic medicine with access to cutting-edge DNA sequencing technology. Learn how genomics is enhancing cancer diagnosis, creating datasets for retinal diseases, finding new solutions for endometrial health issues, and improving prostate cancer treatment.
TAGC is a partnership between Illumina and the University of Melbourne, with support from Invest Victoria. Together we are working to increase genomics innovation, its translation and adoption into the healthcare system, and improve patient outcomes.
DATE
04/09/24
6.00PM - 7.00PM
TIME
THE LAUNCHPAD, MELBOURNE CONNECT
WHERE
MEET THE PANEL
Cristina Bitzilis is an Account Manager in Clinical Genomics at Illumina
Cristina ensures that researchers and clinicians across Australia and New Zealand keep up to date with the latest sequencing technologies. Cristina has a great curiosity for technology and innovation, and a background as a Medical Laboratory Scientist.
Professor Niall Corcoran is a urologist and translational researcher based in Melbourne. He is currently Head of Urology at Western Health, and a visiting urological surgeon at Royal Melbourne and Frankston hospitals where his main clinical focus is the management of prostate and bladder cancer. He is a principal research fellow in the University of Melbourne Centre for Cancer Research, where his group investigates mechanisms of progression in early prostate cancer, prognostic biomarkers and novel neoadjuvant treatment strategies. He is also the Research and Education lead in genitourinary oncology at the VCCC Alliance.
Associate Professor Richard Tothill is a leading expert in cancer genomics with over 20 years of experience. He is internationally recognized for developing genomic tests for Cancer of Unknown Primary (CUP). As the translational lead of the national Solving Unknown Primary Cancer (SUPER) study and principal investigator for the MRFF-funded SUPER-NEXT study, he assesses the clinical impact of whole genome sequencing and liquid biopsy in CUP patients. Richard heads the Rare Disease Oncogenomics Laboratory at the University of Melbourne Centre for Cancer Research, focusing on the genomic pathology of rare cancers and precision medicine. He completed his PhD at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and has extensive experience in academic research. His research has included genomic analyses of solid adult cancers, such as ovarian cancer and neuroendocrine neoplasias, and he has been an early adopter of next-generation DNA sequencing and single-cell gene expression profiling.
Associate Professor Lauren Ayton is a distinguished clinician-scientist specialising in inherited retinal disease (IRD), low vision, and vision restoration, with expertise in gene therapy and bionic eyes. As the Associate Dean of Innovation and Enterprise at the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, and Health Sciences, she excels in knowledge translation. From 2010-2017, she led the clinical research team at Bionic Vision Australia, developing Australia’s first bionic eye, and later served as Director of Clinical and Regulatory Affairs at Bionic Eye Technologies in the USA. Currently, she heads the Vision Optimisation Unit at the University of Melbourne and co-leads the Retinal Gene Therapy Unit with Dr Tom Edwards at the Centre for Eye Research Australia.
Professor Peter Rogers is a renowned expert in women's health research with 40 years of experience leading research teams in university hospital settings. As a Professor at the University of Melbourne and Director of Research at the Royal Women's Hospital since 2012, he currently leads a 5-year MRFF-funded program on improving diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis, including six registered clinical trials. Professor Rogers has extensive experience in biobanking, having chaired the Victorian Cancer Biobank Consortium Committee from 2008-2010. He has published over 300 scientific articles, primarily on endometriosis, menstruation, and fertility, with an H-index of 71. Prof Rogers has a significant industry and commercial background. He was instrumental in the commercialisation of IVF as the Scientific Director of Monash IVF in the 1980s.
