Molecular classification of carcinoma of unknown primary [ 2003 - 2005 ]

Research Grant

Researchers: Prof David Bowtell (Principal investigator) ,  Dr Andrew Holloway ,  Prof Danny Rischin ,  Prof Rodney Hicks

Brief description Carcinoma of unknown primary (CUP) is the fourth largest cause of cancer death. The condition has a particularly poor outlook, with a median survival of less than one year. Current methods for diagnosis of CUP include histopathology and sophisticated imaging. These are successful in approximately 40% of cases. Frequently the reason for the poor outcome in this disease is that the 60% of patients with CUP for whom no diagnosis is made do not benefit from chemotherapy specifically designed for a particular tumour origin. These patients receive a less effective, generic, chemotherapy. The aim of this project is to use microarrays to identify the gene expression profile in many known tumours to create a molecular fingerprint of the various tumour types. By comparing the fingerprint from a CUP with the database we should be able to identify the true tumour type in CUP, and allow patients to benefit from more specific chemotherapy.

Funding Amount $AUD 418,250.00

Funding Scheme NHMRC Project Grants

Notes Standard Project Grant