$30M research zeroes in on breast cancer’s lethal second act

In a landmark investment to reduce deaths from recurrent early breast cancer, the National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) has awarded a $25 million grant to Associate Professor Christine Chaffer to lead a five-year research initiative – AllClear.

Every day, 58 Australians are diagnosed with breast cancer. Each year, over 3,300 women die from the disease – not typically from the tumour in the breast, but from metastases, most commonly to the bones. AllClear seeks to interrupt this deadly trajectory by identifying and eliminating cancer cells that lie dormant in bone marrow, long before they can reawaken and spread.

“AllClear brings unprecedented collaboration to identify these ‘seeds’ of relapse early. This will allow us to develop the world’s first and largest biobank of primary breast tumours paired with corresponding bone samples, collected at multiple stages throughout the course of the disease. This research will let us develop tools to predict who is most at risk of relapse and develop targeted therapies to eliminate these seeds of relapse, before they reawaken and cause metastatic breast cancer,” said Associate Professor Chaffer.

At the core of the program is a strategy to identify patients who already have disseminated cancer cells at diagnosis – and intervene before recurrence. The resulting clinical trial platform will focus on personalising treatment for high-risk early breast cancer patients based on the unique characteristics of their tumours.

Breast Cancer Trials researchers Professor Fran Boyle and Dr Sanjeev Kumar will lead the clinical trial components of the study, translating lab-based insights into patient-focused outcomes.

“Breast Cancer Trials is collaborating on this important project with the view to developing a neoadjuvant (treatment given before surgery) trial platform,” explained Dr Nicholas Zdenkowski, Breast Cancer Trials’ Medical Advisor and Investigator on the project. “The groundwork done by the research will collect data that will inform clinical trial research to test new therapies to eradicate dormant cells, with the aim of giving every breast cancer patient the all-clear.”

NBCF Chair, Adjunct Professor Helen Zorbas AO, called the project an international benchmark in ambition and impact.

“This Collaborative Research Accelerator Grant is a bold and strategic investment in breast cancer research – international in scope and transformational in impact. As Chair, I’m proud of the National Breast Cancer Foundation’s leadership in funding this pioneering grant under its Pink Horizon Research Strategy. This is more than funding – it’s a strategic catalyst for change, a powerful demonstration of Australia’s research leadership, and a vital step toward saving lives,” she said.

The AllClear initiative also represents a powerful convergence of aligned goals and funding. While the NBCF will provide the majority of the $25 million grant, collaborating research partners will contribute an additional 20% through co-investment.

“Breast Cancer Trials’ vision of no more lives cut short aligns with National Breast Cancer Foundation’s vision of zero deaths from breast cancer – this shared vision is central to the outcomes of AllClear,” said Karen Price, CEO of Breast Cancer Trials.

“While survival rates have improved significantly, the fear amongst patients that their breast cancer will recur is very real. As Australia and New Zealand’s largest independent not-for-profit organisation dedicated solely to breast cancer clinical trials research…we expect to see a big leap forward in discovering how breast cancer recurrence can be interrupted. Unlocking the secrets to that will be the key to no more deaths from breast cancer.”

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