$1 million Pfizer Fellowship awarded for melanoma research at AusBiotech 2010

Dr Mark Shackleton was last night awarded the 2011 Pfizer Australia Senior Research Fellowship grant for his research proposal at the AusBiotech 2010 Conference Dinner. Professor John Funder, chair of the selection committee, announced this year’s winner, who will use the $1 million, five-year Fellowship for research into ‘Identifying determinants of human melanoma progression’.

A medical oncologist and the head of the Melanoma Research Laboratory at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Dr Mark Shackleton’s research project aims to better understand the mechanisms through which melanomas progress in patients, with a view to identifying new and more effective therapies against the disease.

“The relevance of this work for both the medical community and the wider community is significant. By studying clonal evolution and by developing more clinically relevant models of disease progression, we expect to be able to identify new biomarkers of disease and identify new and improved therapies for the treatment of melanoma,” said Dr Shackleton.

Through financial support, the Pfizer Australia Research Fellowships aim to encourage leaders in biomedical research to establish a career in Australia, fostering the continued development of Australia as a source of world-class scientific innovation and ideas.

The Fellowships endeavour to demonstrate that scientific research is an important and rewarding career option. The Fellowships promote science as a significant source of innovative thinking and technological development, and as an important contributor to our long-term economic and social well being.

“The Pfizer Research Fellowships are an important contributor to scientific research in Australia,” said Dr Anna Lavelle, CEO of AusBiotech. “With a strong international reputation in innovation, the future of the Australian biotechnology industry relies on continued investment in our intellectual resources.”

The Pfizer Australia Senior Research Fellowship will cover salary travel and other establishment costs, enabling Dr Shackleton to initiate research at the Melanoma Research Laboratory, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.

Winners of the Fellowship are selected by an independent panel of eminent Australian medical researchers.

AusBiotech 2010 is the annual conference of AusBiotech and the premier biotechnology conference for Australia and the Asia-Pacific. The conference attracts over 1,400 delegates from across the world each year and is renowned for its agenda-setting programs, significant business analysis and world class Business Matching Program.

For additional event information visit the conference website at: www.ausbiotech2010.com.au.