Molecular Cancer Epidemiology

Group Leader

Associate Professor Amanda Spurdle

Summary

The Molecular Cancer Epidemiology Laboratory studies breast and ovarian cancer, endometrial cancer, colon cancer and prostate cancer, with a focus on identifying molecular signatures of normal and tumour tissue that can point to the genetic and environmental causes of these cancers. The laboratory covers a range of projects with the themes of cancer epidemiology and molecular pathology.

Conditions researched

• Breast cancer
• Ovarian cancer
• Endometrial cancer
• Colorectal cancer
• Prostate cancer

Current research

• The Australian National Endometrial Cancer Study (ANECS)
• Clinical classification of Mismatch Repair gene variants
• Clinical classification of BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene variants
• Breast and ovarian cancer predisposition and prognosis and modifier genes
• Prostate cancer predisposition and prognosis genes

Staff

Group Leader: Associate Professor Amanda Spurdle

Postdoctoral staff: Dr Felicity Lose, Dr Jyotsna Batra

Research Assistants: Phillip Whiley, Michael Parsons

PhD students:  Tracy O'Mara, Bryony Thompson, SriLakshmi Srinivasan, Yen Tan

Funding

We gratefully acknowledge support from the following organisations and funding bodies:

• National Health and Medical Research Council
• Cancer Australia
• Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia

Collaborators

ANECS (Australian National Endometrial Cancer Study)

ENIGMA consortium (Evidence-based Network for the Interpretation of Germline Mutant Alleles)

InSiGHT (International Society for Gastrointestinal Hereditary Tumours Incorporated)

kConFab (Kathleen Cuningham Foundation consortium for research into familial breast cancer)

BCAC consortium (Breast Cancer Association Consortium)

CIMBA consortium (Consortium of Investigators of Modifiers of BRCA1/2)

E2C2 (Epidemiology of Endometrial Cancer Consortium)

PRACTICAL consortium (Prostate Cancer Association Group to Investigate Cancer Associated Alterations in the Genome)

Professor Douglas Easton, Dr Alison Dunning and Prof Paul Pharoah, Cambridge University, UK

Professor David Goldgar and A/Prof Sean Tavtigian, University of Utah, USA

Professor Fergus Couch, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, USA

Dr Logan Walker, University of Otago, New Zealand

Professor Melissa Brown, Prof Lakhani, University of Queensland

Professor Judith Clements, Queensland University of Technology

Dr Andreas Obermair, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital

Professor Georgia Chenevix-Trench, Cancer Genetics, QIMR

Dr Penny Webb and Dr Christina Nagle, Gynaecological Cancer Group, QIMR

Dr Joanne Young, Familial Cancer, QIMR