2004 News Archives

To launch the official start of summer, The Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) and Suncorp have announced a first-ever partnership to combat the scourge of skin cancer in Queensland.... [read more]

QIMR is undertaking a major project to defeat one of the most common cancer killers in Asian people. Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC) - also known as Guangdong Cancer - is a cancer of the nose and throat and is often difficult to treat effectively... [read more]

Scientists from QIMR have found that HIV drugs known as protease inhibitors may also be effective for treating or preventing malaria. A recent study found that anti-HIV drugs inhibited the growth of Plasmodium falciparum, the malaria parasite... [read more]

Dengue fever may soon become a thing of the past, as QIMR broadens its successful and totally environmentally-friendly mosquito-breeding control programs against dengue fever. Using tiny micro-crustaceans called copepods, scientists at QIMR have, in a world-first, successfully eliminated the breeding of dengue-carrying mosquitos... [read more]

QIMR researchers have just received a 5 year grant from the National Institutes of Health in the USA to develop a vaccine against Group A streptococcus... [read more]

National sporting champions will join their research heroes around the country to celebrate better health and quality of life from Australian medical research discoveries... [read more]

Scientists at QIMR are halfway through a major project examining possible genetic causes of atopic dermatitis, the most common form of eczema. [read more]

Scientists at QIMR and the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital have determined that although alcohol consumption and alcohol dependence are closely related, genes can independently influence alcohol habits... [read more]

A recent project at The Queensland Institute of Medical Research found that determining the age of female mosquitoes may be crucial to halting the spread of diseases like malaria that kills 2 million people annually. The difference between a mosquito living for only 1 week, versus 2 to 3 weeks, means everything when it comes to transmission of pathogens which cause dengue fever, Ross River virus, and malaria. [read more]

The Asia-Pacific Forum on Tropical Health Innovation recently held in Cairns has united leaders in many health and related fields to plan health care delivery and develop innovative solutions for economic and health problems for the future. [read more]

A Brisbane based biomedical company, Tissue Therapies Limited (TIS) and the Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) are collaborating to produce cancer immunotherapy vaccines... [read more]

Professor Adèle Green, the Deputy Director of QIMR was awarded the Companion in the Order of Australia at recent Queen's Birthday Honours Celebrations. [read more]

Three top scientists at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) were finalists in this year's Queensland Premier's Awards for Medical Research. The development of novel vaccines against cancer and a diagnostic test for a worm infection are some of the recent advances made by these scientists. [read more]

Scientists at QIMR are currently trialing an experimental "immunotherapy" treatment for men with advanced prostate cancer. Already some of the participants in the trial, who commenced with advanced metastatic disease, are experiencing substantial reductions in their tumour load. [read more]

A front runner in the search for schizophrenia genes is the Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research (QCMHR), based at The Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR). The QIMR group has a number of projects underway in a framework of national and international collaborations. [read more]

Q-Pharm, a clinical trial company located within QIMR, is currently seeking volunteers to participate in a clinical trial of a herbal cream for the treatment of both Tinea (athlete's foot and jock itch) and acne. The purpose of the trial is to evaluate the efficacy of the new cream for treatment of these two conditions. [read more]

The Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) is working on a vaccine to prevent rheumatic fever (RF) and rheumatic heart disease (RHD). By taking advantage of a new technology that involves coating small protein fragments of the bacteria with lipid (fat) components, the immune response to the vaccine is improved. [read more]

May 4, 2004 is World Asthma Day. Asthma, hayfever, eczema and associated allergies are among the most common chronic diseases in the developed world. It has been estimated that up to 50% of people in western societies suffer from these conditions, and in Australia alone, health care costs for asthma alone exceed $700 million each year. [read more]

Scientists at The Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) have determined that moderate wine intake may reduce the risk of ovarian cancer. In this large study of 696 women with confirmed epithelial ovarian cancer and 786 cancer-free control women, consumption of any alcohol was associated with a reduced risk of ovarian cancer. [read more]

The Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) and Peplin Biotech Ltd. have announced that five years of collaborative research on Peplin's new cancer drug, PEP005, has been published in the prestigious peer reviewed international journal, Cancer Research. [read more]

An epic journey of over 4,300 kilometres to raise funds and awareness for the Queensland Institute of Medical Research ended today at Bondi beach in Sydney as three young men from Brisbane arrived 32 days after leaving Fremantle on their bikes. [read more]

QIMR scientists are one step closer to an immunotherapy "vaccine" against Hodgkin's disease and a form of naso-pharyngeal cancer (NPC) after receiving a prestigious grant from the USA's National Institutes of Health (NIH). [read more]

QIMR Director Michael Good was among the group of volunteers at QIMR who today stepped up to the challenge of raising money for leukaemia research by participating in the Leukaemia Foundation's annual "Shave for a Cure". While not all were ready for the No. 1 cut, an interesting mix of colours emerged as the group were relieved of their tresses and their usual workaday look. [read more]

The man who has conducted more concerts at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre than anyone else and who was once called a "hit" by the Queen will be remembered in a tribute concert to mark his remarkable life and untimely death. Colin Harper, founder of the Queensland Pops Orchestra and former military bandmaster, will posthumously help cancer trials at The Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) through two tribute concerts at QPAC on Saturday, April 3. [read more]

HIV continues to ravage the world and there is still no cure. More than 30 million men, women and children have died from AIDS. AIDS now kills more people worldwide than any other infectious disease. More than 40 million people are living with HIV. Nearly all will die from AIDS-related complications within the next two decades. An estimated 5 million people were newly infected with HIV in 2003.

"Current HIV therapy known as HAART therapy is effective, but expensive and thus not available to the vast majority of people infected with HIV..." [read more]

Scientists at The Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) and the Princess Alexandra Hospital have demonstrated that losing weight and exercising regularly can significantly slow progression of chronic liver disease in those who are overweight. "Being overweight is bad for the liver..." [read more]

Three Brisbane men are undertaking the trek of their lives when they cycle from Perth to Sydney to raise funds and awareness for The Queensland Institute of Medical Research. The month long journey, beginning on February 28 and estimated to finish on the 31st March, will take in more than 4,000 kilometres - much of it harsh and lonely desert. [read more]