Role
The EAP provides the Minister for Health and Aged Care with advice on the strategic priorities for research investment through this Mission. Its role is to to provide expert advice to define evidence and identify knowledge gaps that should be addressed through Mission research funding. This will involve revising the existing Mission Roadmap and developing an Implementation Plan.
EAP members consult and engage with other researchers, industry and consumer/patient groups. They also and participate in media and public activities to build awareness of the Mission.
A second group of experts will be appointed following the finalisation of the Roadmap and Implementation Plan to oversee the implementation of the Mission.
Further information on the roles and responsibilities of MRFF EAP can be found in the MRFF Mission Governance resource.
Members
The Australian Government appoints the EAP. It is has an independent Chair and includes members appointed for their expertise in research, clinical, commercial and lived experiences of brain cancer.
The following members are responsible for revising the Roadmap and developing an Implementation Plan. The information in the following table, including the declarations of interest, is current as at September 2024.
| Member | Background and experience | Declarations of interest |
|---|---|---|
| Professor Maria Kavallaris AM (Chair) | Professor Kavallaris AM FAHMS FRSN is Founding Director of the Australian Centre for NanoMedicine at the University of New South Wales. She is also Head of Translational Cancer NanoMedicine at the Children’s Cancer Institute. | Recipient of National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and MRFF funding. Employed by Children’s Cancer Institute. Founding Director, Australian Centre for NanoMedicine, University of New South Wales (non-remunerated). Council Member, QIMR Berghofer (remunerated). NHMRC Women in Health Sciences Committee. Director, Board of the Australian Institute for Policy and Science (non-remunerated). Director, Board of the National Breast Cancer Foundation (non-remunerated). |
| Mr Alan Suy | Mr Suy has lived experience as a carer for a child affected by brain cancer. He is the director of Maddy & Co Pty Ltd – a company set up in February 2023 to fund gaps in brain cancer treatment options and supporting families. | Director of OPM Management Pty Ltd. Director of Mighty Maddy & Co Pty Ltd. |
| Dr Amy Georgina Davies | Dr Davies is a medical oncologist and a stream lead in neuro-oncology at Latrobe Regional Health. She is experienced in treating adults with primary brain tumours at a regional hospital in Victoria. She is a member of the Emerging Leaders Advisory Panel, Private Cancer Physicians Australia and member of Advanced Non-small Cell Lung Cancer Working Group, Thoracic Oncology Group. | Nil |
| Professor Sheila Kumari Singh | Professor Singh is the director of Centre for Discovery in Cancer Research, McMaster University, Canada. She has expertise in stem cell biology, brain cancer relapse and recurrence, neurodevelopmental biology, pre-clinical models from human tumour samples and surgery. Professor Singh is a Canada Research Chair in Human Cancer Stem Cell Biology and director of McMaster Paediatric Brain Tumour Study Group: Multidisciplinary Research Collaborative for clinical paediatric neuro-oncology in Canada. | Nil |
| Dr Jessica Buck | Dr Buck is a senior research fellow and a NHMRC Emerging Leadership fellow for the Brain Tumour Research Program at Telethon Kids Institute. She is also the Indigenous Working Group lead for the ZERO Childhood Cancer Project. | Recipient of MRFF, NHMRC and Cancer Australia funding. Appointments held with Telethon Kids Institute and University of Western Australia. |
| Professor Shudong Wang | Professor Wang is the founder and director of Aucentra Therapeutics. She is also the head of drug discovery and development, clinical and health sciences at University of South Australia. | Director of biotechnology company Aucentra Therapeutics Pty. Ltd. |
| Associate Professor Raelene Endersby | Associate Professor Endersby is the joint head of the Brain Tumour Research Program at the Telethon Kids Institute. She plays an active role within the Collaborative Network for Neuro-Oncology Clinical Trials Preclinical Steering Committee and the Central Nervous System Tumours Group of the Australian New Zealand Children’s Haematology Oncology Group. She is also the joint leader of the national ZERO2 Preclinical Research Strategy. Associate Professor. Endersby was the Chair for the Australian Brain Cancer Mission Review Panel. | Recipient of MRFF funding. |
| Dr Elizabeth Benson | Dr Benson is a research scientist in tumour vaccine development and a consultant neuro-immunologist at the National Centre for the Neurobiological Treatment of Addiction. She is a specialist physician in clinical immunology, an immunopathologist and an immunological research scientist involved in vaccine development for brain tumours and translational medicine between these two areas. | Board member of South East volunteers organisation (not for profit) and Crimcheck. Provision of unpaid advice to a researcher at the ANZAC Research Institute, concerning vaccine development. |
| Associate Professor Haryana Dhillon | Haryana Dhillon is an Associate Professor in Psychology at University of Sydney and the Chief Investigator of the MRFF funded BRAINS (Brain cancer Rehabilitation, Assessment, Intervention of survivor Needs) program. | Recipient of MRFF funding. Chair, Psycho-Oncology Cooperative Research Group Scientific Advisory Committee. |
| Professor David Ziegler | Professor Ziegler is a paediatric haematologist/oncologist at Kids Cancer Centre, Sydney Children’s Hospital and group leader of the Brain Tumour Group in Children’s Cancer Institute. Professor Ziegler is also Head of the Neuro-Oncology program and the Cancer Clinical Trials program at Sydney Children’s Hospital. He leads multiple clinical trials including national childhood cancer personalised medicine trials through the ZERO program. | Recipient of MRFF funding. Consulting/advisory board fee recipient from Bayer, Accendatech, Novartis, Day One, FivePhusion, Amgen, Alexion, Norgine and Medison Pharma and research support from Accendatech. |
| Professor Rosemary Anne Harrup | Professor Harrup is the Deputy Chair of the Cooperative Trials Group for Neuro-Oncology (COGNO). She is a member of the board of the Cancer Council of Tasmania, the Tasmanian Cancer Registry Advisory Group and the RHH Research Foundation Scientific and Advisory Committee. Professor Harrup is also a Tasmanian representative on the National Cancer Expert Reference Group. | Recipient of MRFF funding. Director, Cancer Council Tasmania. Director, RHH Research Foundation. Director, COGNO Ltd. Director, Cancer and Blood Services Tasmania Health Services South. |
| Professor Mark Rosenthal | Professor Rosenthal is a medical oncologist and Director of the Parkville Cancer Clinical Trial Unit at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. His primary interests include neuro-oncology and clinical trials. | Nil |
| Mr Samuel McGuane | Mr McGuane is the Executive Director for Carrie’s Beanies 4 Brain Cancer, and is a Mission funding partner representative. He is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Brain Cancer Centre. Mr McGuane has held previous senior strategic positions with Cotton On Group, including managing global community initiatives and leading the development of sports partnerships with the AFL and NRL. | Executive Director, Carrie’s Beanies 4 Brain Cancer Foundation. Working collaboratively across research projects with Mark Hughes Foundation Centre for Brain Cancer Research under a Memorandum of Understanding. Chief Executive Officer, Brain Cancer Centre. |
| Dr Kim Louise Wark | Dr Wark is the Head of Research at Robert Connor Dawes Foundation, and is a Mission funding partner representative. She has over 15 years of experience working in the research and education sectors in public, private and not for profit organisations including: CSIRO, Australian Red Cross Blood Service, Laureate Universities, Arthritis and Osteoporosis Victoria and Swinburne University. Dr Wark previously worked as a researcher in the biotech sector developing platform technologies. | Representing Robert Connor Dawes on:
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Declarations are accurate as of September 2024. No conflicts of interest required action beyond ‘register’, as defined in the MRFF Declarations of Interest Policy Statement. | ||
Related committees and groups
The EAP provides advice to the Minister for Health and Aged Care.
We deliver the Mission in partnership with Cancer Australia. Cancer Australia leads engagement and collaboration with the Mission’s Funding Partners.
The Health and Medical Research Office provides secretariat support to the EAP.
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