Marg McGee
Major grant funding to progress lipid-based ...
Major grant funding to progress lipid-based therapies to treat prostate cancer
Marg McGee
Inaugural FCMHW Early Career Research Fellow at ...
Inaugural FCMHW Early Career Research Fellow at Flinders University - Jasmine Petersen
Marg McGee
Congratulations 2022 Honours Scholarship ...

Congratulations to the Centre’s 2022 Honours students on their scholarship awards and we wish them all the best for their research and training

Congratulations 2022 Honours Scholarship awardees
Publications, media release, Feature publication
Kelsey Long
Validation of a short form Male Depression Risk ...

Validation of the Male Depression Risk Scale short form in a cross-sectional study of Australian men. Herreen D, Rice S, Zajac I. Brief assessment of male depression in clinical care:BMJ Open. 2022 Mar 28;12(3):e053650. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-053650.

Contact: Dr Ian Zajac

Validation of a short form Male Depression Risk Scale
Kelsey Long
The Women of the FCMHW - International Women's ...

To celebrate International Women’s Day, the Centre is highlighting some of the fantastic women of men’s health that have been supported by the Centre and are achieving great work in the field. FCMHW encourages and commends the involvement of women in men’s health and hopes to further support it in the future.

The Women of the FCMHW - International Women's Day

prostate cancer

Major grant funding to progress lipid-based therapies to treat prostate cancer

Congratulations to members of the Lipids and Prostate Cancer Laboratory (University of Adelaide) at SAHMRI on their major grant funding and appointments.

Dr Zeyad Nassar (pictured left), who was recently appointed as a Post-doctoral Research Fellow at the South Australian Immunogenomics Cancer Institute (SAIGENCI) has been awarded a prestigious and highly competitive grant from the US Department of Defense. The funding worth more than $1Mi over three years will be used to advance drug development and trialing of lipid-based therapies as a new strategy to treat prostate cancer.

Dr Shanice Mah (pictured right), who recently completed her PhD in the Centre and has been awarded a Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia Future Leaders award of $100,000 to support her lipids and prostate cancer program. (Salary and laboratory costs for 12 months).  

We also congratulate Professor Lisa Butler (pictured centre) on her appointment as Lead Associate of the South Australian Immunogenomics Cancer Institute.

Reviewing spatial approaches to target identification and treatment decision-making for prostate cancer.

Reviewing spatial approaches to target identification and treatment decision-making for prostate cancer.

Unravelling Prostate Cancer Heterogeneity Using Spatial Approaches to Lipidomics and Transcriptomics. Cancers. Mutuku SM, Spotbeen X, Trim PJ, Snel MF, Butler LM, Swinnen JV. (Basel). 2022 Mar 27;14(7):1702. doi: 10.3390/cancers14071702.

Contact: Lisa Butler

Using Patient-Derived Explants in Prostate Cancer Research

Using Patient-Derived Explants in Prostate Cancer Research

Harnessing the Heterogeneity of Prostate Cancer for Target Discovery Using Patient-Derived Explants. Centenera MM, Vincent AD, Moldovan M, Lin HM, Lynn DJ, Horvath LG, Butler LM. Cancers (Basel). 2022 Mar 28;14(7):1708. doi: 10.3390/cancers14071708.

Contact: Lisa Butler

Geneotypes of men with advanced prostate cancer who may benefit from metabolic therapies

Geneotypes of men with advanced prostate cancer who may benefit from metabolic therapies

Combined impact of lipidomic and genetic aberrations on clinical outcomes in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. Mak B, Lin HM, Kwan EM, Fettke H, Tran B, Davis ID, Mahon K, Stockler MR, Briscoe K, Marx G, Zhang A, Crumbaker M, Tan W, Huynh K, Meikle TG, Mellett NA, Hoy AJ, Du P, Yu J, Jia S, Joshua AM, Waugh DJ, Butler LM, Kohli M, Meikle PJ, Azad AA, Horvath LG. BMC Med. 2022 Mar 25;20(1):112. doi: 10.1186/s12916-022-02298-0.
Contact: Lisa Butler

Identifying the most appropriate bone scan strategy for Australian men with prostate cancer

Identifying the most appropriate bone scan strategy for Australian men with prostate cancer

Evaluation of selective bone scan staging in prostate cancer - external validation of current strategies and decision-curve analysis.

Hiwase MD, Jay A, Bulamu N, Teh J, Paterson F, Kichenadasse G, Vincent AD, O'Callaghan M; South Australian Prostate Cancer Clinical Outcomes Collaborative (SA-PCCOC). Prostate Cancer Prostatic Dis. 2022 Mar 14. doi: 10.1038/s41391-022-00515-8.


Contact: Andrew Vincent

Long term toxicity following radiotherapy for prostate cancer - A review

Long term toxicity following radiotherapy for prostate cancer - A review

Long term genitourinary toxicity following curative intent intensity-modulated radiotherapy for prostate cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

David R, Buckby A, Kahokehr AA, Lee J, Watson DI, Leung J, O'Callaghan ME. Prostate Cancer Prostatic Dis. 2022 Mar 8. doi: 10.1038/s41391-022-00520-x.
Contact: Michael O’Callaghan

DNA-PK has novel role in Metabolism by Regulating Glycolysis in Prostate Cancer

DNA-PK has novel role in Metabolism by Regulating Glycolysis in Prostate Cancer

Novel Role for DNA-PK in Metabolism by Regulating Glycolysis in Castration Resistant Prostate Cancer.
Dylgjeri E, Kothari V, Shafi AA, Semenova G, Gallagher PT, Guan YF, Pang A, Goodwin JF, Irani S, McCann JJ, Mandigo AC, Chand S, McNair CM, Vasilevskaya I, Schiewer MJ, Lallas CD, McCue PA, Gomella LG, Seifert EL, Carroll JS, Butler LM, Holst J, Kelly WK, Knudsen KE.
Contact: Lisa Butler

Prostate cancer cell growth is influenced by cholesterol levels

Prostate cancer cell growth is influenced by cholesterol levels

Prostate cancer cell proliferation is influenced by LDL-cholesterol availability and cholesteryl ester turnover.
Raftopulos NL, Washaya TC, Niederprüm A, Egert A, Hakeem-Sanni MF, Varney B, Aishah A, Georgieva ML, Olsson E, Dos Santos DZ, Nassar ZD, Cochran BJ, Nagarajan SR, Kakani MS, Hastings JF, Croucher DR, Rye KA, Butler LM, Grewal T, Hoy AJ. Cancer Metab. 2022 Jan 15;10(1):1. doi: 10.1186/s40170-021-00278-1.PMID: 35033184
Contact: Lisa Butler

Fatty acid oxidation inhibition to treat advanced prostate cancer

Fatty acid oxidation inhibition to treat advanced prostate cancer

With progressed prostate cancer, men are no longer responding to the standard anti-androgen drug therapy. While developing new drugs often can take 15 years, this program will reduce this timeframe by aiming to re-purpose existing lipid-modifying medicines. We aim to take our laboratory findings into a proof-of-concept clinical trial to test whether trimetazidine is safe and effective in treating men on ADT, to prevent or delay the onset of lethal castrate resistant prostate cancer.

Through this trial we aim for a potential new therapeutic approach using existing drugs used to treat cardio-metabolic disease to prevent lethal prostate cancer, reduced drug-related toxicities in men being treated for prostate cancer, and Improved length and quality of life for men living with advanced prostate cancer.

Contact: Dr Zeyad Nassar

Improving precision medicine for men being treated for prostate cancer

Improving precision medicine for men being treated for prostate cancer

The aim of this project is to determine the impact of commonly prescribed classes of concomitant non-cancer medicines (i.e.antibiotics, proton pump inhibitors, lipid- and blood glucose-lowering medications) on the efficacy of treatments for metastatic prostate cancer. To achieve this, we will exploit large clinical trial datasets, sophisticated data analytic methods (e.g. machine learning) and biologically-informed models.

Contact: Dr Ashley Hopkins

Improving uptake of prostate cancer screening in men from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

Improving uptake of prostate cancer screening in men from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

We will partner with researchers and community outreach officers at Cancer Council SA (lead by Dr Jess Loyer), the Multicultural Communities of South Australia Men’s Group who are investigating barriers to engagement with cancer control programs among CALD communities.

This program aims to adapt the current RACGP prostate cancer screening decision-making tool to be culturally sensitive and meet the needs of men from CALD backgrounds and improve the uptake of PSA screening which will facilitate early detection and treatment/monitoring of prostate cancer.

Contact: Dr Norma Bulamu

Safety & useability established for ExerciseGuide for men with metastatic prostate Ca

Safety & useability established for ExerciseGuide for men with metastatic prostate Ca

Acceptability and preliminary efficacy of a web- and telephone-based personalised exercise intervention for individuals with metastatic prostate cancer: The ExerciseGuide pilot randomised controlled trial. Cancers (Basel). 2021 Nov 25;13(23):5925. doi: 10.3390/cancers13235925. PMID: 34885036.
Evans HEL, Galvão DA, Forbes CC, Girard D, Vandelanotte C, Newton RU, Vincent AD, Wittert G, Kichenadasse G, Chambers S, Brook N, Short CE.
Contact: Holly Evans

Closing out 2021 with grant funding to progress research across the Centre

Centre members have been awarded grant funding for projects across the three themes. Congratulations to the following researchers.

Dr Zeyad Nassar

Targeting fatty acid oxidation, a novel approach for prostate cancer treatment. Cancer Australia and Cure Cancer Foundation 2022-2023 $200,000

Prof Chun Zia-Zhao, Prof Lisa Butler

Accelerate project: Fighting cancer with space biology.
development in prostate cancer. DIGI+ and FAME Strategy Uni of Adelaide Grant. 2022 $100,000

Dr Nicole McPherson, Dr Melissa Oxlad, Prof Deborah Turnbull

Men's unmet psychosocial needs when diagnosed with male infertility.

Ferring Australia 2021-2022 $50,000

Mr Jason Bonson, Mr Vigona, Prof James Smith

Pathways into the social and emotional wellbeing workforce for young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males, AMSANT. $35,000

Prof James Smith, Dr Kootsy Canuto, Dr Daile Rung, Dr Himanshu Gupta, Mr Jahdai Vigona, Mr Jason Bonson, Mr Aanundsen, Mr Sam Moore

Developing a Northern Australia Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander male health and wellbeing research strategy. HOT North. $20,000

Inhibition of ceramide metabolism combats enzalutamide resistance in prostate cancer

Inhibition of ceramide metabolism combats enzalutamide resistance in prostate cancer

Overcoming enzalutamide resistance in metastatic prostate cancer by targeting sphingosine kinase.
Lin HM, Mak B, Yeung N, Huynh K, Meikle TG, Mellett NA, Kwan EM, Fettke H, Tran B, Davis ID, Mahon KL, Zhang A, Stockler MR, Briscoe K, Marx G, Crumbaker M, Stricker PD, Du P, Yu J, Jia S, Scheinberg T, Fitzpatrick M, Bonnitcha P, Sullivan DR, Joshua AM, Azad AA, Butler LM, Meikle PJ, Horvath LG.
EBioMedicine. 2021 Oct 14;72:103625. doi: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103625. PMID: 34656931.
Contact: Lisa Butler

The role of the 6PGD protein in prostate cancer hormone treatment resistance

The role of the 6PGD protein in prostate cancer hormone treatment resistance

A feedback loop between the androgen receptor and 6-phosphogluoconate dehydrogenase (6PGD) drives prostate cancer growth.
Gillis JL, Hinneh JA, Ryan NK, Irani S, Moldovan M, Quek LE, Shrestha RK, Hanson AR, Xie J, Hoy AJ, Holst J, Centenera MM, Mills IG, Lynn DJ, Selth LA, Butler LM. Elife. 2021 Aug 12;10:e62592. doi: 10.7554/eLife.62592. PMID: 34382934.
Contact: Luke Selth