Aplastic Anaemia occurs when the body stops producing enough new blood cells. Some of these patients may respond to immunosuppressive therapy or bone marrow transplant, and some may progress to malignancy (myelodysplasia and/or acute myeloid leukaemia). Given this range of outcomes, any additional understanding may assist in clinical decision-making and may improve patient outcomes.
This study collects repeated small samples of blood from patients over time as part of a new tool to track accumulation of genomic mutations found in the blood. The technique takes advantage of the presence of cell free DNA in the blood, as a source for mutation testing, instead of traditional time-consuming and painful bone marrow collection. This new patient monitoring technique has already been used to track progress and potential mutation changes in 21 patients to date with over 100 tests performed. The potential impact of these studies on new techniques for monitoring Aplastic Anaemia patient progression may mean less painful, time-consuming bone marrow collection and more up-to-date disease information benefiting both clinician and patient.
2021-2023 (Grant-in-Aid): Curation of the DIAAMOND-based Aplastic Anaemia Biobank. Associate Professor Stephen Ting, Monash University. This project (the DIAAMOND biobank) is a sub-study of the DIAAMOND clinical trial and will collect, process ...
Read more2019-2021 (Grant-in-Aid): Microenvironmental determinants of Aplastic Anaemia progression to MDS / AML. Associate Professor Rachel Koldej, ACRF Translational Research Laboratory, Melbourne Health. Aplastic Anaemia is a disorder where the body ...
Read more2021-2022 (Grant-in-Aid): Outcomes of Haematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Paediatric Patients with Severe Aplastic Anaemia (SAA) and Bone Marrow Failure (BMF) Syndromes. Dr Steven Keogh, Australasian Bone Marrow Transplant Recipient ...
Read more2018-2023 (Grant-in-Aid): Using induced pluripotent stem cells to find causes and cures for bone marrow failure in children and young adults. Professor Andrew Elefanty, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute. Bone Marrow Failure Syndromes may be ...
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