2024 Research Grants

We are delighted to announce the AMRF grant recipients for 2024.

Melanoma incidence is set to rise over the next 10 years.  More than 200,000 Australians are expected to be diagnosed with melanoma before 2030.

The survival rate from advanced melanoma has improved from 10% to 50% over the last decade  – largely due to improvements in detection and treatment.

It is only through the support of our partners and donors that this support is available.  Thank you for making a difference.  Our Research Committee, which includes three external experts, has selected five young Australian researchers for grants in the 2024 round.

Post Graduate Scholar Grant recipient for 2024

Dr Jessamy Tiffen
University of Sydney, NSW

Post Graduate Scholar Grant recipient for 2024

Nigel Maher
University of Sydney, NSW

Post Graduate Scholar Grant recipient for 2024

Lewis Newland
University of Melbourne, VIC

Early Career Researcher Grant recipient for 2024

Dr Carly Whyte
University of South Australia, SA

Early Career Researcher Grant recipient for 2024

Vivian Chua
Edith Cowan University, Perth, WA
2024 AMRF Grant Recipients | Dr Jessamy Tiffen

Dr Jessamy Tiffen

University of Sydney, NSW

We have identified a new gene that allows melanoma to ‘shapeshift’ in order to better resist treatment. Using gene-editing studies we will comprehensively define the role of this new drug target in melanoma.  

“We are extremely delighted to receive this research grant from AMRF. Despite enormous advances in melanoma treatments, the development of treatment resistance remains a major challenge that plagues long-term outcomes. This project offers hope for melanoma patients in improving long-term responses.”

Nigel Maher

University of Sydney, NSW 

My research project is training an artificial intelligence-based classifier to distinguish melanomas from moles on pathology slides used in routine practice, to develop a new quality assurance tool. 

“I’m very grateful to receive this grant, as it will help me gain critical experience in this new field of computational pathology, and allow me to translate my knowledge as a pathologist to train a robust AI classifier for distinguishing melanomas and moles.”

2024 AMRF Grant Recipients | Nigel Maher
2024 AMRF Grant Recipients | Lewis Newland

Lewis Newland

University of Melbourne, VIC

Lymph nodes are typically the first site of metastasis in melanoma, and CD8+ T cell responses in this context are particularly poorly understood. Therefore, this project will help improve our understanding of how CD8+ T cells can control melanoma metastases, which could inform future therapeutic strategies

“I am very grateful to be awarded this grant by the AMRF. This funding will allow me to further our research into understanding immune control of melanoma metastases.”

Dr Carly Whyte

University of South Australia, SA 

Harnessing our immune system to fight melanoma has revolutionised the lives of many patients. However, not all patients respond to these immunotherapies. We are researching a type of immune cell called an eosinophil, which has been associated with better outcomes for melanoma patients. By understanding more about how diverse this cell can be, we hope to better understand how it contributes melanoma prognosis and treatment.  

“I’m extremely grateful to the Australian Melanoma Research Foundation for their support of this project. With their help, we can improve our understanding of the immune response to melanoma, which will guide improved treatments and quality of life for people with melanoma.”

2024 AMRF Grant Recipients | Dr Carly White
2024 AMRF Grant Recipients | Vivian Chua

Vivian Chua

Edith Cowan University, Perth, WA

Fimepinostat is a targeted therapy that is being tested in clinical trials for other cancer types but not in uveal melanoma. My research project will study effects of the Fimepinostat drug in uveal melanoma.

“I am an early-to-mid career researcher establishing an independent research group to focus on uveal melanoma or liver metastasis. This award will allow me to generate research data that may be evidence for testing of a novel treatment strategy in patients and that will also be part of future grant applications to continue supporting my career and my research towards improving melanoma patient survival.”

Read the 2023 AMRF Melanoma Research Update

Melanoma research

The AMRF is committed to funding research aimed at furthering knowledge and offering better outcomes in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of melanoma.

The AMRF will focus on supporting early career researchers in Australia.

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