Ever wondered where funds raised from annual Movember activities end up?
Movember may be a light-hearted way to bring awareness to the serious issue of prostate cancer, but at its heart is an innovative, collaborative effort that aims to accelerate research outcomes and ultimately benefit men with prostate cancer around the world.
‘GAP’ – the Movember Global Action Plan brings together the world’s top prostate cancer researchers, allowing them to connect, share knowledge and data for greater efficiency and return on investment and time.
You can see more about the GAP concept in this video:
GAP currently has two focused programmes underway:
GAP 1 – THE GLOBAL PROSTATE CANCER BIOMARKER INITIATIVE
Overall Goal: To better predict aggressive prostate cancer, characterise metastatic disease and treatment resistance by identifying clinical biomarkers that ultimately enhance treatment decisions
The initiative aims to answer critical, but as yet unanswered, clinical questions which will allow clinicians to better predict aggressive prostatecancer and characterise metastatic disease and treatment resistance by identifying clinical biomarkers that ultimately enhance patient treatment decisions.
The key results that we seek to achieve from this project are:
• Stronger international collaboration in the global prostate cancer research arena leading to improved knowledge sharing and greater efficiencies in the research effort
• Development of promising new blood, urine and tissue based tests (biomarkers) that can more accurately predict low risk versus aggressive prostate cancer and optimise a patient’s treatment decisions
GAP 2 – COLLABORATIVE GLOBAL IMAGING PROJECT
Overall Goal: Push the limits of prostate cancer imaging breakthroughs
Imaging is a truly “front-line” investigative tool in diagnosing cancer. Current technology can only see down to around 1mm in size and as cancer spreads at a cellular level (typically around 1000 x smaller than this), there is real benefit in making improvements in this area. There is a real need to improve the ability to detect disease progression at a much earlier stage so as to improve outcomes for men with prostate cancer.
The key results that we seek to achieve from this project are:
• Detect the spread of Prostate Cancer much sooner
• Make better decisions on which treatments will lead to the most effective outcomes for patients
• Realise synergies from and continue to leverage the investment and collaborative networks established in GAP 1
GAP researcher Dr. Bill Jordan recently spoke to the Movember team about his involvement in the global collaboration:
What is your research focus in the GAP program?
I’m working on early detection of the outcome of prostate cancer to enhance treatment. My research is focused on proteins, that at the time of first diagnosis, might be used to predict how the cancer will behave and therefore help determine what treatment is most appropriate for a patient.
How do you think GAP will help men affected by prostate cancer?
The international collaborations enabled through GAP, will facilitate health outcomes that will deliver better prognostic tools so men can receive the correct treatment for their prostate cancers.
What has Movember’s funding through GAP allowed you to do that otherwise, would not have been possible?
We are collaborating with Australian colleagues on development of blood and urine tests to aid early detection and treatment of prostate cancer. Collaboration between scientists and clinicians is essential for progress in the treatment of cancers. Movember’s GAP adds the dynamic of combining expertise and resources throughout the world, for a common purpose and emphasises collaborations that would be otherwise difficult to fund.
