The day began with a warm welcome from Dr Richard Boyle, Orthopaedic Oncologist Surgeon, and Director RPA Bone and Soft Tissue Sarcoma Unit.
Orthopaedic /bone tumour surgeon Dr Maurice Guzman then went on to provide update on action items from the 2023 Sarcoma Summit & next steps. A copy of this presentation and the progress made is attached.
Professor David Thomas, Chief of science and strategy, Omico, Centre for Molecular Oncology UNSW delivered a compelling address on “Genomics and tumour agnostic therapies as standard of care for sarcoma patients” This proposal is a visionary approach which delivers timely and equitable solutions to those who may otherwise have not have access to matched therapeutics.
Dr Riona Pais, Senior Staff Specialist, RPA Palliative Care Service spoke about the importance of supportive care, and what standard of care should look like for those in need.
An informative and uplifting video followed provided an insight into the “Impact of a Clinical Nurse Consultant on the sarcoma patient journey”. Aisling Byrne, Hannah Blyth, Hilary Myers, Clinical Nurse Consultants, at the RPA Bone and Soft Tissue Sarcoma Unit and an integral part of the patient experience.
Tayia Yeates, Service Manager, Manly Adolescent and Young Adult Hospice introduced her presentation which stepped the audience through the facility, which was the vision of the late Kay Van Norton Poche, with her colleague touching upon the very harrowing process of end of life, highlighting a deeply moving case study of the lengths the service can go to to ensure patient’s wishes are met.
Kylie Tarleton, a proud Wiradjuri woman, Senior Manager Diversity & Inclusion TAFE NSW and Mother of sarcoma survivor, Cooper Tarleton, delivered a remarkable presentation on Strength in Culture: Cooper’s Cancer Journey through Adolescence and Strength in Culture, often drawing on very personal experience. This provided those present with a valuable and raw personal insight into the challenges and opportunities that lie in the treatment processes for the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Island community.
The Open forum discussion convened by Mitchell Rice-Brading, Sarcoma Patient Support Advocate, Cooper Rice-Brading Foundation saw panellists Rebecca Minty, Carmen Scheffer, Prof Wayne Nichols, Dr Madeleine Strach, and Keith Cox, OAM, cover topics for discussion including genomic screening, timely and equitable access to clinical trials, and a wrap -around service for those diagnosed with sarcoma.
Questions were invited from the audience and while time was the enemy, a robust discussion took place.
After a much-needed tea break, Dr Dan Franks chaired the second session and did a superb job of what can be a very challenging role. A/Professor Fernando Guimaraes, University of Queensland spoke about the exciting developments with Natural Killer (NK) Cell Therapy. This trial has been proudly funded by The Tie Dye Project, The Kids Cancer Project, Tour de Cure, and Bricks and Smiles.
A/Professor Marianne Phillips, Paediatric Medical Oncologist, Perth Children’s Hospital with over 36 years’ experience in paediatric oncology, presented on the Inter-Ewing-1 trial in Australia, and the evolution of this trial, reminding us all of the importance of these very important advances for sarcomas with traditionally low survival outcomes.
Dr Maya Kansara, Head Translational Oncology Lab, Omico stepped those in the audience through the forthcoming CaSP SARC: a sarcoma research programme attached to the Australian Cancer Screening Programme CaSP. This programme is expected to enrol around 3000 patients making it the largest of its kind in the world.
Kate Alexander, Research Manager, Surgical Outcomes Research Centre (SOuRCe) outlined the exciting advances in the collection of data for bone and soft tissue surgeries in NSW, which will contribute to unlocking the answers to the questions that currently exist.
Dr. Geoffrey Murphy, Senior Resident Medical Officer, RPA Orthopaedics led an enlightening talk on “Whoops Lesions”: Incidence and Outcomes of Unplanned Sarcoma Excisions and the research which is underway. This research is designed to work out how these all-too-common occurrence can be prevented.
Christine Cockburn, CEO, Rare Cancers Australia may have been one of the last speakers, however her overview of RCA’s sarcoma patient support was pivotal to the session. She highlighted the importance of diverse and relevant means to support those living with sarcoma. RCA provide support to those living with rare cancers, including sarcomas and are aligned with ANZSA in their provision of support
He event finished with a Fireside chat: The impactful work of not for-profit organisations & the role of philanthropy in sarcoma research
Rebecca Minty, Founder, Bricks and Smiles, Mary Lou Minty, Bricks and Smiles, Mandy Basson, Executive Director, Sock it to Sarcoma! each spoke about their remarkable work funding research, raising awareness and supporting those living with sarcoma.
It was then a very robust networking session with the last of the guests leaving after 7.30pm!
The day would not have been possible without the support of SLHD, Insitute of Academic Surgery, RPA, and NSW Health, together with the truly wonderful behind the scenes work of Dr Sophie Hogan, Matthew Halpin, Anja Sauer, and Meghan Cue Floresca.
We look forward to seeing you all next year when we do it all again!
Sarcoma Workshop 1 - Update on 2023 Sarcoma Summit Action Plan & Service Developments - 18 Sep 24
