About Us

Mission

To reduce mortality and morbidity and improve the quality of life of men with prostate cancer.
To develop strategies for the prevention of prostate cancer.

Aims

To promote

  • research into all aspects of prostate cancer
  • collaboration between individuals and organisations working in prostate cancer research
  • understanding of prostate cancer in the general community and amongst cancer patients
  • an evidence-based approach to the assessment and management of prostate cancer,
  • undergraduate and postgraduate education for health professionals and researchers.
  • a forum for a wider appreciation of the scientific, clinical and social aspects of prostate cancer

Background and Structure

The Collaboration, which was established in 1998, was the initiative of a group of scientists and clinicians, facilitated by Professors Wayne Tilley and Villis Marshall of the Dame Roma Mitchell Research Laboratories, Hansen Centre, University of Adelaide.

Constitution

The Australian Prostate Cancer Collaboration Constitution is available to download (in PDF format)

Executive Committee

  Professor Villis Marshall (Chair) - vmarshall@mail.rah.sa.gov.au
  Professor Gail Risbridger - gail.risbridger@med.monash.edu.au
  Professor Wayne Tilley - wayne.tilley@imvs.sa.gov.au
  Assoc Professor Frank Gardiner - f.gardiner@uq.edu.au
  Dr Judith Clements - j.clements@qut.edu.au
  Dr Suzanne Steginga - suzannesteginga@cancerqld.com.au
  Mr David Smith - dsmith@nswcc.org.au
  Associate Professor John Grygiel - j.grygiel@unsw.edu.au
  Dr Carole Pinnock - carole.pinnock@rgh.sa.gov.au

Executive Office

  c/o Andrology Australia - info@andrologyaustralia.org

Education Committee

  Dr Suzanne Steginga - ssteginga@qldcancer.com.au 
  Dr Carole Pinnock - carole.pinnock@rgh.sa.gov.au

Epidemiology Committee

  Dr David Smith - dsmith@nswcc.org.au

Translational Research Committee

  Professor Pam Russell - prussell@unsw.edu.au

Clinical Trials Committee

  Professor Villis Marshall - vmarshall@mail.rah.sa.gov.au

Activities and Achievements:

The APCC has addressed needs in awareness in education, in developing an infrastructure for molecualr and genetic research and for testing new treatments with the following achievements.

  • An 88 page guide for men with localised prostate cancer and the families based on evidence-based treatment recommendations. To date we have distributed over 8,000 copies in response to requests

  • An Australian Prostate Cancer Website with content requested by Australian men with prostate cancer. After two years, the site attracts 50,000 hits per month, and has answered over 400 questions, 90% from Australian men. The site won the Public health Association best health website award, 2001

  • Prostate cancer Information day telephone Call-ins over the last 2 years. Over 1000 calls, mainly from Australian men were received in a 3 hour period in 2001

  • A study to determine availability, strengths and development needs of peer support groups in Australia.

  • A new distance-delivered course for nurses specialising in the care of men with prostate cancer and their families.

  • A new Australian clinical trials group to undertake trials of new non-drug treatment strategies for prostate cancer. Currently pharmaceutical companies fund many drug trials, but there is no accessible source of funding or coordination of non-drug therapies.

  • The first Australian national Prostate Cancer Tissue Bioresource.Tissue and clinical data collection is essential to finding new markers of diagnosis and progression for this cancer, in turn critical to early detection and treatment decisions. We are setting up an infrastructure to share tissue collections nationally so all molecular and genetic researchers can have access to this resource.