The University of Sydney and Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA) have executed a five-year affiliation agreement, ending 30 November 2027.
Highlighting our longstanding relationship, this is a renewal of a previous affiliation which was executed in 2015.
The partnership, in line with the University's 2032 Strategy, will allow for us to further our world class cancer research, tackle complex challenges and deliver solutions with positive global impact.
Professor Emma Johnston, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), welcomed the announcement:
"The University of Sydney is proud to renew our longstanding affiliation with Melanoma Institute Australia. This renewed affiliation demonstrates our commitment to the strategic goal of tackling complex challenges and delivering solutions with positive global impact.
"Our researchers, Professor Georgina Long and Professor Richard Scolyer, have achieved remarkable success in the field, and I am confident that, with the support of this renewed partnership, they will continue to drive further innovation and discovery in the years to come."
About Melanoma Institute Australia
Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer and was the third most diagnosed cancer in 2022. It is estimated 1300 Australians will die from melanoma in the next 12 months. However, if caught early, 90 percent of melanomas can be cured by surgery.
The Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to preventing and curing melanoma through innovative, world-class research, treatment and education programs. Through our partnership, we can maintain our position being at the forefront of global advances in melanoma research and treatment.
Approximately 2000 new melanoma and complex skin cancer patients are referred into MIA each year, and MIA has approximately 20,000 patient visits per year.
This renewed affiliation demonstrates our commitment to the strategic goal of tackling complex challenges and delivering solutions with positive global impact.
Our researchers leading global advances in melanoma research and treatment
Guiding MIA's mission of achieving zero deaths from melanoma are Co-Medical Directors and University of Sydney researchers Professor Georgina Long and Professor Richard Scolyer. These distinguished researchers were both ranked in the top one percent of their field in the 2022 Clarivate Highly Cited Research List.
Professor Georgina Long leads an extensive clinical trials team and laboratory, with a focus on targeted therapies and immuno-oncology in melanoma. She was appointed as an Officer of the Order of Australia (2020) and has received several awards, including the prestigious Ramaciotti Medal for Biomedical Research (2021) and the Vice-Chancellor's Award for Excellence Award for Outstanding Research (2021). In November 2022, she was ranked the world's number one melanoma expert in all fields and disciplines.
Professor Richard Scolyer consults on more than 2000 cases annually which are difficult to diagnose. According to Thomson Reuters ISI Web of Knowledge, he is the highest-ever published scientist in the world in the field of melanoma pathology and he also has the highest H index in this field. In September 2019, he was ranked as the leading Australian Pathologist in the entire field of pathology by League of Scholars. He is a member of the University's Charles Perkins Centre.
Current projects
In a world-first coming out of the MIA, an early phase trial of an mRNA personalised cancer vaccine has shown promising results for preventing melanoma recurrence in patients with resected high-risk melanoma (stage III and IV).
The Phase 2 Moderna and Merck trial involved 157 melanoma patients in Australia and the USA whose melanoma had been surgically removed but who were at very high risk of it recurring. Professor Georgina Long, who was involved in the Australian arm of the clinical trial, described the initial results as possibly "the second penicillin moment in cancer treatment".
"This is the first trial to demonstrate that we can use both the mRNA technology and a personalised approach to cancer to improve outcomes for patients with cancer," Professor Long said. "We found when we added a personalised vaccine - so an mRNA very similar to the COVID vaccine technology but based around the patient's personal melanoma - the chance of recurrence was reduced by 44 percent. We now need to confirm results in a larger trial which we are hoping to start early next year."
