ANSTO health researchers are undertaking scientific investigations to support better approaches to the treatment of head and neck cancer with the support of the Michael Tynan Challenge, a Sutherland Shire based foundation to support medical research.
Molecular biologist Dr Ryan Middleton and a team at ANSTO are working with clinicians and scientists from St George Hospital and the Microbiome Research Centre at the University of NSW to gain a better understanding of the relative contribution of age, the immune function, microbiota in the gut and radiation in optimising outcomes of head and neck cancer treatment.
Traditionally radiotherapy was considered as a local treatment; however, there is strong evidence that radiotherapy can act as a potent immune modulator — working synergistically with systemic treatments.
The research team is currently refining approaches to potential projects, such as the role of the microbiome, the effects of ageing and the role of radiotherapy.
In the last two decades, global research interest has focussed on the importance of the body’s immune function as the main player in the development of cancer and affecting the treatment outcome.
Cancer cell growth is known to be associated with a failure in immune surveillance and hence restoring the desired immune response against cancer cells can be a major therapeutic strategy.
There is strong clinical and preclinical evidence that immunodeficiency is associated with a higher rate of cancer development and is associated with more aggressive cancer and its resistance to current treatments.
Aging and changing of normal microbiota also have a complex effect on the normal immune function which can both affect immune surveillance and lead to cancer development and poor outcome.
Immunotherapy is currently evolving in the field of oncology, in which different drugs are used to stimulate different steps in a failing cancer immune response chain.
ANSTO is building on its expertise in the delivery, quantification, and characterisation of radiation effects on biological systems.
ANSTO has the facilities to undertake preclinical research while any clinical research would be undertaken by St George Hospital.
Michael Tynan (OAM), the founder of Tynan Motors, passed away in February 2016 after a two-year fight with cancer.
