MAJOR GRANT TO CELEBRATE AND SHARE NEWCASTLE’S BREAST CANCER RESEARCH LEADERSHIP

Newcastle-based breast cancer research organisation Breast Cancer Trials has been granted $240,000 by the Newcastle Port Community Contribution Fund for a special exhibition to coincide with the organisation’s 50th anniversary.

The Portraits of Hope photo and video exhibition will celebrate 50 years of life-changing breast cancer clinical trials research and honour key people who have contributed to Newcastle’s Breast Cancer Trials’ breakthroughs and longevity as a research organisation.

Through the powerful stories of trial participants, researchers and supporters who have made these advances possible, the exhibition will highlight the importance of clinical trials and honour the faces behind five decades of breast cancer breakthroughs. Featuring a special focus on extraordinary women from Newcastle and the Hunter with a history of breast cancer, the exhibition will showcase the profound impact of research on individuals, families and communities.

“We are thrilled to be the recipient of this very generous grant from the Newcastle Port Community Contribution Fund,” said Karen Price, CEO of Breast Cancer Trials. “This grant will allow us to shine a light on people who can rightly be proud of their enormous contribution to Breast Cancer survival rates and the impact from our research over 50 years.

“This funding will help us deliver a large-scale, professional photographic and storytelling exhibition which will honour the people who have shaped breast cancer outcomes in the Hunter, NSW, nationally and beyond, over five decades.”

Founded in 1978, Newcastle-based Breast Cancer Trials is the largest independent, oncology clinical trials research organisation in Australia and New Zealand, dedicated to the treatment, prevention and cure of breast cancer.

Examples of Breast Cancer Trials’ breakthrough research achievements include the HERA trial, which proved the effects of Herceptin and has now saved countless women with HER2-positive breast cancer, and the IBIS-I trial, which showed treatment drug Tamoxifen reduces breast cancer incidences in women at high risk of the disease.

“Our Portraits of Hope exhibition will benefit the community through encouraging visitors and tourism to Newcastle, and it will coincide with our Annual Scientific Meeting in 2028, which attracts hundreds of leading breast cancer researchers from across Australia and New Zealand,” Ms Price said.

The exhibition is planned for July 2028.

Contact: BCT Media & PR Lead, Sara McGregor – 0424 591 241 or sara.mcgregor@bctrials.org.au

Our life-saving breast cancer research is only possible thanks to the continued generosity of our supporters.