Genetic epidemiology

Epidemiology in the 1980s predated the Human Genome Project and was very focused on environmental exposures. Anticipating growth in genetic technology during the lifetime of the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study, we collected blood from all subjects as a resource to analyse DNA.

Similarly, in our case-control family studies, developed in collaboration with John Hopper, we sampled blood not only from probands (the primary people tested) but also from their relatives. This positioned us to be eligible for National Institutes of Health funding for population-based collaborative family studies. These studies are already delivering information that is important to cancer control activity in regard to hereditary breast and colorectal cancer.

Current projects

For further information on any of the current research projects please email cec@cancervic.org.au.

Breast CFR (Collaborative Family Register)

Colon CFR (Collaborative Family Register)

Australian melanoma family study

KConFab

ACTANE (Anglo-Canadian-Texan-Norwegian-EU) consortium

IARC Prostate Cancer Genetics Discovery Project

ICPCG (International Consortium for Prostate Cancer Genetics)

Australian Prostate Cancer Family Study

Victorian Early Onset Prostate Cancer Family Study

Breast CFR (Collaborative Family Register)

Investigator(s): Australia - John Hopper**, Graham Giles, Melissa Southey*, Margaret McCredie*, plus 5 overseas centres (*External collaborators **Project Leader)

Objective(s):

  • To conduct a large case-control-family study of breast cancer.
  • To recruit and obtain DNA samples from families (first degree relatives and aunts) of a population based sample of probands identified from population cancer registries and from age-matched controls.

Colon CFR (Collaborative Family Register)

Investigator(s): Australia - John Hopper**, Jeremy Jass**, Graham Giles, Melissa Southey*, Mark Jenkins*, plus 5 overseas centres (*External collaborators **Project Co Leaders) 

Objective(s): 
  • To conduct a large case-control-family study of colorectal cancer.
  • To recruit and obtain DNA samples from families (first degree relatives, uncles and aunts) of a population based sample of probands identified from population cancer registries and from age-matched controls.

Australian melanoma family study

Investigator(s): Australia - Graham Mann**, John Hopper*, Graham Giles, Rick Kefford*, Bruce Armstrong*, Joanne Aitken*, plus overseas centres (*External collaborators **Project Leader).

Objective(s):

  • To conduct a large case-control-family study of melanoma.
  • To recruit and obtain DNA samples from families (first-degree relatives, uncles and aunts) of a population based sample of probands identified from population cancer registries and from age-matched controls.

KConFab

Investigator(s): Graham Giles, Helen Farrugia, Georgia Chenevix-Trench* et al (* External Project Leader)
Objective(s): To develop an efficient system to collect, check and access the data obtained from eligible families recruited by family cancer clinics in Australia.

ACTANE (Anglo-Canadian-Texan-Norwegian-EU) consortium

Investigator(s): Australia - Graham Giles, John Hopper*, Dallas English, Gianluca Severi, Melissa Southey*. UK - Ros Eeles** Doug Easton (* External collaborators **Project Leader)

Objective(s): To recruit and obtain DNA samples from multiple case prostate cancer families that are eligible for genetic linkage analysis to assist the search for susceptibility genes by contributing them to an international consortium.

IARC Prostate Cancer Genetics Discovery Project

Investigator(s): Graham Giles, John Hopper*, Dallas English, Gianluca Severi, Melissa Southey*. USA: Sean Tavtigian** (*External collaborators **Consortium Leader)

Objective(s):

  • To search for prostate cancer susceptibility genes in subjects most likely to be carrying significant variants by analysing DNA from men diagnosed with prostate cancer at an early age and who have a family history of prostate cancer.
  • To choose candidate genes for sequencing.

ICPCG (International Consortium for Prostate Cancer Genetics)

Investigator(s): Graham Giles, John Hopper*, Dallas English, Gianluca Severi, Melissa Southey*. USA: Bill Isaacs** (* External collaborators **Consortium Leader)

Objective(s): To recruit and obtain DNA samples from multiple case prostate cancer families that are eligible for genetic linkage analysis to assist the search for susceptibility genes by contributing them to an international consortium.

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