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EVENT: Can we engineer immune cells to treat cancer? Or fix a faulty gene?

October 15, 2022


Bring your questions to a free public event at 5.30pm Tuesday 15 November at the State Library of Victoria.

 

The convergence of stem cell science and gene therapies are set to impact the future healthcare, with the potential to treat leukaemia, inherited eye diseases, muscular dystrophy, and more.

Gene therapy aims to treat disease by replacing faulty genes or introducing new genes. The field is still in its early days, but there are gene therapies in use, treating some blood cancers and eye conditions.

But what exactly is it? How are stem cells involved? What will it treat? And when? Ask the experts at the Gene therapies and stem cell research: now and in the future public forum.

You’ll hear from a panel of researchers and clinicians sharing their perspectives on treatments for:

  • leukaemia and haemophilia: Dr Ashley Ng, WEHI, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and Royal Melbourne Hospital
  • childhood neurological diseases: Dr Sandi Kariyawasam, Sydney Children’s Hospital
  • retinal diseases: Dr Tom Edwards, Centre for Eye Research Australia
  • blindness and deafness: Dr Anai Gonzalez-Cordero, Children’s Medical Research Institute
  • muscular dystrophy: Dr Peter Houweling, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute

This forum will be hosted by Foundation director and stem cell biologist Professor Megan Munsie. You will also hear from advocate and community leader Julie Cini who lost both of her children to the rare genetic condition spinal muscular atrophy.

When: Tuesday 15 November 2022, 5:30PM – 7PM AEDT

Venue: Village Roadshow Theatrette, State Library of Victoria, Swanston Street, Melbourne

The event is hosted at the State Library of Victoria by the Australasian Society of Stem Cell Research. The Foundation is supporting the event as part of our mission to provide community education.

Register here.

 

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