Australian Government invests $14 million in ANZCHOG-led childhood brain cancer initiative

February 6, 2025

This week we received the welcome news that the Australian and New Zealand Children’s Haematology and Oncology Group (ANZCHOG) will be leading a ground breaking $14 million initiative to tackle childhood brain cancer. Part of a $20 million funding boost for childhood brain cancer research, CoACT-Brain Cancer (The Consortium for Australian Children’s Trials in Brain Cancer) will establish a national clinical trial consortium dedicated to improving outcomes for children and adolescents with brain cancer.

CoACT represents an alliance of childhood brain cancer specialists from ANZCHOG’s multidisciplinary membership, leading Australian research groups, international clinical trial consortia, and the nine Australian children’s cancer treatment centres. CoACT will connect over 70 investigators with diverse expertise from more than 30 institutions, all working toward a common goal: to increase opportunities for children with brain cancer to participate in clinical trials to improve outcomes.

Brain tumours are the leading cause of disease-related death in children and for the most aggressive forms, such as Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), there are currently no effective treatments. This funding, announced this week by Federal Health Minister, The Hon. Mark Butler MP, will enhance collaboration, ensure children have access to the latest promising treatments and accelerate progress in this critical area of paediatric cancer research.

CoACT will focus on research themes across the child and adolescent cancer journey; from diagnosis to survivorship, and will integrate national and international research efforts with consumer involvement driving research across all themes. Research themes include a Pre-Clinical Research Network, a Clinical Trials Platform supporting global and Australia-led trial portfolios, Data-Driven Clinical Innovation, Equity & Access, and Quality of Life & Survivorship.

This funding will have an impact on finding better outcomes for children with brain cancer, now and into the future. Thank you to the ANZCHOG team, patients and families, investigators and our partner organisations, all of whom advocated and worked together to make this grant application successful. We look forward to leading this initiative and collaborating with our partners to change the landscape of childhood brain cancer treatment and outcomes.

Read the Australian Government Media Release HERE