Victoria

Depiction of viruses

Breakthrough in search for HIV cure leaves Australian researchers ‘overwhelmed’

/

The virus’s ability to conceal itself inside white blood cells is a core challenge for scientists looking for a cure. It means there is a reservoir of HIV in the body, capable of reactivation, that neither the immune system nor drugs can access. Now, researchers from the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection & Immunity in Melbourne have found a way to make the virus visible, paving the way to fully clear it from the body. UNAids estimates that one person died of HIV every minute in 2023.

Woman with pink breast cancer ribbon

New therapy trial from Australian researchers nearly doubles breast cancer cure rates

/

A phase 3 clinical trial from Melbourne’s Peter MacCallum Cancer Center has shown that adding a targeted immunotherapy drug to chemotherapy dramatically improved the cure rate for patients with the most common kind of breast cancer. In the present phase 3 trial, 510 patients were randomized to receive chemotherapy with either intravenous nivolumab or placebo. In patients treated with nivolumab plus chemotherapy, rates were statistically significant, nearly double those who received placebo plus chemo: 24.5% versus 13.8%, respectively.

Molecule of the human hormone glucagon

Australian scientists regenerate diabetics’ damaged cells to produce insulin

/

For many years, research has focused on identifying novel therapies that stimulate beta-cell growth and function to restore insulin production in type 1 diabetics. Now, researchers at the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute in Melbourne have brought us a step closer to making this a reality, regenerating damaged pancreatic cells so they can produce insulin and functionally respond to blood glucose levels. The novel therapeutic approach has the potential to become the first disease-modifying treatment for type 1 diabetes.

Scroll to Top