Cancer & Ageing

The Cancer and Ageing Research Program (CARP) is a comprehensive cancer
research initiative that brings together internationally regarded research teams of
surgeons, clinicians and basic scientists to solve two key questions:

These two questions are inherently linked, because as
we age our risk of cancer increases.

Our research has identified a key protein that is increased in all cancers that we have studied including breast, pancreatic, lung and colorectal cancers. When we block this protein in cancer cells they die.

The CARP team are currently working towards understanding how this protein functions in cancer and are developing new drugs to target its function. We are aiming to bring one of these drugs into the clinic to treat patients within the next three years.

This same protein is also linked to other proteins that are important in ageing. In very exciting early experiments, we have been able to change the activity of some of these proteins that may delay the ageing process.