Acceleration Partners

To find a single medical breakthrough – one that changes our understanding of cancer, dementia, immunology, or infectious diseases – and could benefit hundreds of thousands of Australians.

This program was established to bring together a group of like-minded philanthropists with the aim of accelerating the pace of transformational research discovery.

Acceleration Partners make targeted investments in two of our most promising research projects each year, assessed by experts as being on the cusp of critical discovery.

Professor Kate Sutherland’s research targets cancer cells that rapidly multiply, creating an ‘invisibility cloak’ that allows them to avoid being detected by our body’s natural defenders, immune cells (T cells). Immunotherapy usually removes this cloak, making cancer cells susceptible to attacks from the immune system.

Yet in certain cancers, immunotherapy fails, and the cells remain undetected, allowing cancers to advance. This project investigates the ‘de-cloaking’ phase, aiming to uncover why immunotherapy is ineffective in these cases and how this insight could revolutionise future cancer treatment.

Associate Professor Gemma Kelly’s research aims to understand why certain people have poor responses to standard cancer therapy. It also aims to develop innovative methods for enhancing the success of cancer treatment.

With a particular focus on a gene responsible for producing a vital tumour-suppressing protein, Gemma and her team are directing their research efforts towards advancing cancer treatment.

Today your donation can expedite the pace of transformational research discovery – thereby saving and improving lives in a near future.