Cancer research: New screening programs

Ground-breaking research at Flinders University is developing new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer, and to support people affected by cancer in their quest for ongoing health and wellbeing.

Our cancer researchers have designed new screening programs to improve rates of early detection and are working hard to increase screening rates for a range of cancers in the general population.

With early detection, cancer sufferers will be able to access the best available treatments, increase their chance of survival and maintain their health and wellbeing beyond treatment.

New discoveries at Flinders University have enabled researchers to grow tumour cells from patient biopsies into clumps known as ‘organoids’. These organoids can be used to track the behaviour of a tumour and study the effectiveness of different treatments.

Flinders Senior Research Scientist Dr Erin Symonds and her colleagues are now gathering samples of prostate and breast cancers to look at the possibility of developing blood tests for each. They aim to detect cancer earlier than ever, to save lives and improve the quality of life for cancer sufferers throughout our community.

‘Our development of the new diagnostic blood tests will be a step forward in improving screening rates of the general public,’ says Dr Erin Symonds.

This cutting-edge, early screening research includes finding biomarkers of oesophageal cancer in breath samples, and testing urine for molecules associated with kidney and bladder cancer. Saliva is also being investigated as a method for detecting cancer earlier than ever before.

However, we need your help to continue and further Flinders University’s innovative and life-changing research. 100% of your tax-deductible donation will support priority research at Flinders University.

In the future, we hope to spend less time treating cancer because we’re preventing it where we can, and treating it more effectively when we can’t.

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Flinders Senior Research Scientist Dr Erin Symonds