Prof Stuart Pitson
(BAppSc, PhD)
NHMRC Senior Research Fellow
NRF Chair, Brain Tumour Research
Head, Molecular Therapeutics Laboratory, Centre for Cancer Biology
University of South Australia and SA Pathology
Prof Pitson has a substantial research track record in cancer cell signalling, development of new anti-cancer therapeutics, and the isolation and use of patient-derived glioblastoma cells and orthotopic patient-derived xenografts in mice for pre-clinical examination of new drugs and drug combinations.
In the last few years his laboratory, in collaboration with key South Australian neurosurgeons, has developed an extended panel of well-characterised low-passage patient-derived glioblastoma cell lines and a diverse series of well-characterised patient-derived intracranial glioblastoma xenografts in mice. In this time his Laboratory has also amassed a number of advanced tools for medulloblastoma research.
He has published over 150 peer-reviewed research papers (52 since 2016) creating international impact (>8400 citations). Prof Pitson has a strong record in successful research funding, having been awarded more than $37 million in research funding. He has held continuous NHMRC fellowships since 2003 and has a strong record of research commercialisation, having founded two biotechnology companies, supported by $17 million investments to develop drugs based on his research findings. He currently holds the position of NRF Professor of Brain Tumour Research, and is the inaugural Chair of Brain Tumour Research SA, a collaborative of researchers and clinicians fostering brain tumour research to gain better outcomes for brain tumour patients in South Australia.
Current Projects & Areas of Interest:
Developing a living glioblastoma biobank for the evaluation of new and existing therapies
Evaluating new approaches to open the blood-brain barrier to anti-neoplastic drugs for brain tumour therapy
Developing clinically relevant models of recurrent glioblastoma
Developing preclinical models of medulloblastoma and assessment of a novel therapeutic target in these models
Improving immunotherapy for brain tumours by enhancing CAR-T cell persistence