First participant milestone in PhD project
James Brown-Miles, a PhD candidate in the MHF Centre for Brain Cancer Research celebrated an important milestone in his study on Wednesday November 27 with his first recruited patient undergoing an MRI scan at the HMRI Imaging Centre.
James’ scholarship is funded by the Cancer Institute NSW through the NSW Regional Cancer Research Network. He commenced his PhD project in June 2023, and since then he has been methodically putting everything into place before beginning patient recruitment for his clinical study.
It’s a complex project, with James aiming to recruit 30 patients suspected of having glioblastoma with the help of Associate Professor Mitchell Hansen and other neurosurgeons, as well as MHF Centre for Brain Cancer Research Brain Cancer Nurses and registrars from the Neurosurgery Unit at the John Hunter Hospital.
James’ project aims to study the MRI scans of these patients to look for specific features and patterns that may help to identify markers of key mutations that are known to affect how treatments should be planned.
It’s a multifaceted and complex research study, which is why James has five PhD supervisors each contributing their unique skills and experience to his project. His supervisory team consists of Professor Hubert Hondermarck, Professor Michael Fay, Associate Professor Saadallah Ramadan, Dr Oun Al-iedani and Conjoint Professor Peter Greer.
“This team gives us a range of options and helps us look at the problem from every kind of angle that is possible,” James says.
James’s supervisor Hubert has also received Cancer Institute NSW funding through NSW Regional Cancer Research Network to undertake a project will improve healthcare accessibility and precision for regional, rural, and remote populations through the identification of a non-invasive imaging techniques that, once established, can be easily reproduced in regional imaging clinics and laboratories.
The human touch
James was adamant that one of the most crucial aspects of the patient’s participation was that they feel as at-ease as possible. “We had a number of team members in attendance, including our Consumer Engagement Coordinator Trudi Wynne, and they were able to guide her through the process and provide some comfort,” James said.
“This is potentially a life changing event, so bringing in the humanity is 100% required.” James adds.
Now that he’s completed the first MRI scan, James is excited about progressing the study and learning more about glioblastoma, an aggressive yet unfortunately common form of brain cancer that can impact anyone at any stage of life.
Every piece of the brain cancer puzzle is vital.
And that’s why the participants in the study will also be supplying blood and tumour samples that will be used by the team at the MHF Brain Cancer Biobank* to inform a broad range of research projects.
Additionally, the study MRI will also be used by the patient’s clinicians and surgeons to guide their surgery and radiation treatment. “We’re trying to minimise the scans to reduce the burden on the patients and ensure that the information we gather can not only inform their treatment plan and our research, but research in the future,” James adds.
*The MHF Brain Cancer Biobank is funded by the Mark Hughes Foundation
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