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Institute: QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute
Funding: $371,156 (2026-2028)
Research Pillar: Translate
Cancer Type: Brain (DIPG)
Professor Bryan Day is an internationally recognised brain cancer researcher and Group Leader of the Sid Faithfull Brain Cancer Laboratory at QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute. He is also Co-Director of the Children's Brain Cancer Centre, where he leads research into the biology of aggressive adult and paediatric brain cancers.
His research focuses on uncovering the molecular drivers of childhood brain tumours and developing targeted therapies that are more effective and less toxic than current treatments. His work is helping advance new treatment strategies for devastating childhood brain cancers, including medulloblastoma and diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG).
Our project is focused on developing a new antibody-based treatment for DIPG that targets a cell surface Eph receptor protein. We have developed an experimental antibody that recognises this target, and this grant will help us engineer it to be suitable for clinical development. We will also work toward creating an antibody-drug conjugate, or ADC, an innovative therapy which is designed to deliver a cancer-killing drug more directly to tumour cells. Our goal is to advance this therapy toward clinical trial readiness.
Children with DIPG and other low-survival cancers urgently need new treatment options. Current therapies are limited, and outcomes remain very poor. By developing a treatment that more specifically targets tumour cells and disrupts the ability of the tumour to interact with normal neurons, we hope to create a new therapeutic approach that could be more effective and less damaging than conventional treatments. While there is still important work ahead, this research is a step toward giving children with these cancers better options, more time, and ultimately improved chances of survival.
I would like to sincerely thank The Kids’ Cancer Project supporters and donors for making this work possible. Research like this only happens because people choose to invest in better futures for children with cancer. Your generosity gives scientists the opportunity to pursue bold ideas, build new therapies, and move discoveries closer to the clinic. On behalf of my team, thank you for believing in this research and for standing with children and families who urgently need new hope.
From a field of outstanding candidates across Australia, The Kids’ Cancer Project has funded the next generation of childhood cancer researchers. Their science-backed research is sure to deliver breakthroughs across a range of areas relating to childhood cancer.
