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Donor Funding: $99,156
Cancer Type: Leukaemia
Cancer Stage: Treatment
Funded in: 2021

Prof Timothy Hughes
The University of Adelaide

Most chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) patients need continuous tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy to maintain remission. We hypothesise that some leukaemic cells are kept in a “dormant” state, making them insensitive to TKI. This enables them to survive long-term and cause relapse if therapy ceases. We will identify and characterise these dormant cells, then use novel drugs to activate and sensitise them to TKI-mediated eradication. This would provide a new curative treatment pathway in CML.