PERTH HOSTS INTERNATIONAL BREAST CANCER CONFERENCE

Perth in Western Australia will host the Australia and New Zealand Breast Cancer Trials Group’s (ANZBCTG) 37th Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM) from 22-24 July 2015.

The ASM brings together leading national and international breast cancer researchers to discuss the latest developments in breast cancer clinical trials research, future directions for clinical trials and improving patient care. The ASM is held in a different city in Australia or New Zealand each year.

For more than 35 years, the ANZBCTG has conducted a breast cancer clinical trials research program for the treatment, prevention and cure of breast cancer. The research program involves multicentre clinical trials and collaboration with 87 institutions and over 700 researchers throughout Australia and New Zealand. More than 14,000 women have participated in ANZBCTG clinical trials.

There are six institutions in Western Australia involved in the research program: Fiona Stanley Hospital, Mount Hospital, Royal Perth Hospital, St John of God Hospital in Subiaco, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital and St John of God Hospital in Bunbury. Speakers from Western Australia are: The Chair of the ANZBCTG’s Board of Directors, Professor Fran Boyle AM, says the annual conference is an important meeting place for researchers involved in breast cancer clinical trials.

“This is the 37th year of the ASM and we are fortunate to have a number of esteemed breast cancer researchers attending, to discuss important research findings and future clinical trials,” Professor Boyle said.

“Clinical trials research has contributed to a significant drop in breast cancer mortality, particularly in the last 20 years. It is vital that this research continues to explore scientific questions, which benefits the whole community.”

For further information about the ANZBCTG ASM visit www.anzbctg2015.org. For information about the ANZBCTG research program and breast cancer clinical trials, visit www.anzbctg.org.

Please note that the ANZBCTG’s Annual Scientific Meeting is not open to the public to attend.

Media contact: Anna Fitzgerald, ANZBCTG Communications Manager

Phone: 02 4925 5255 or 0400 304 224 or Email: anna.fitzgerald@anzbctg.org

This year’s international speakers are:
• Professor Jack Cuzick – Director of the Wolfson Institute of Preventative Medicine in London and Head of the Centre for Cancer Prevention and John Snow Professor of Epidemiology at Queen Mary University of London;
• Professor Karen Gelmon – Professor of Medicine and Head of the Division of Medical Oncology at the University of British Columbia;
• Associate Professor Amit Goyal – Consultant Oncoplastic Breast Surgeon at the Royal Derby Hospital in the UK;
• Professor Linda Vahdat – Professor of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College and Attending Physician at New York Presbyterian Hospital both in New York City;
• Professor John Yarnold – Professor of Clinical Oncology at the Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust in London.
• Professor Michael Millward – Foundation Chair of Clinical Cancer Research at the University of Western Australia and a Consultant Medical Oncologist at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Perth;
• Associate Professor Andrew Redfern – Clinical Head of the Cancer Research Division of the Harry Perkins Institute for Medical Research in Perth;
• Professor Christobel Saunders – Professor of Surgical Oncology, academic surgeon, cancer research and teacher of surgery at the School of Surgery, The University of Western Australia;
• Dr Nik Zeps – Director of Research at the SJGHC Subiaco Hospital and head of their translational research program.