Australian researchers aim to improve brain cancer survival rates with new radiotherapy study

Survival rates for brain cancer have remained stubbornly low for decades, prompting an Adelaide-based research team to investigate new approaches to treatment. Biophysics professor Ivan Kempson highlighted the urgent need for advances, stating, "The outcomes are very poor, and survival rates have changed little in the past 35 years, with only two in 10 patients surviving beyond five years." He added that brain cancer tragically kills more children than any other disease and more people under 40 than any other cancer.

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The outcomes are very poor, and survival rates have changed little in the past 35 years, with only two in 10 patients surviving beyond five years.

The research project, funded by a $240,000 grant from the Mark Hughes Foundation Centre for Brain Cancer Research, aims to make radiation therapy more effective at destroying cancer cells while simultaneously protecting healthy tissue. A key focus will be understanding how radiation impacts the immune system.

Professor Kempson explained that the research will delve into the microscopic interactions between radiation, cancer cells, and normal cells. "With looking at the molecular microscopic view, we think we can start to piece together the fundamental information that we need to lead to the next breakthroughs in how brain cancer is treated," he said. The ultimate goal is to achieve better survival rates and improve patients' quality of life post-treatment.

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It kills more children than any other disease and more people under 40 than any other cancer.

While radiotherapy has seen significant advancements for other cancers, brain cancer has unfortunately not responded as well. This new research hopes to bridge that gap by uncovering fundamental molecular information that can lead to the next generation of brain cancer treatments. Specialized tools are being employed to measure radiation damage to DNA, providing crucial data for this endeavor.

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With looking at the molecular microscopic view, we think we can start to piece together the fundamental information that we need to lead to the next breakthroughs in how brain cancer is treated.