Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery

About the surgery research department

The Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery (CMUDS) comprises of a team of specialist colorectal surgeons and research scientists committed to performing high quality clinical and translational bowel cancer research, with an emphasis on answering clinically important questions which can be translated into better quality patient care and outcomes.

Established by Professor Paul McMurrick in 2010, the Cabrini Monash Colorectal Neoplasia Database (CMCND) was the first internet browser-based database of its kind in Australia—and provides the basis for our research and quality assurance programs. Collecting extensive patient data relating to family history, genetic abnormalities, background co-morbidity, treatment, and long-term outcome and follow-up. The CMCND continues to be the flagship for our department providing a platform for translational research studies, quality improvement and guiding patient care. The database was adopted by the Colorectal Surgical Society of Australia and New Zealand in 2013 as the Binational Colorectal Cancer Audit (BCCA). The BCCA is now well established with over 170 contributing sites across Australia and New Zealand participating in this program (https://bowelcanceraudit.com/).

In partnership with our collaborators at Monash University, we are performing a number of laboratory-based translational research projects combining the power of the CMCND with patient-matched tissues to answer clinically important research questions. This enables us to match individual tumour responses to drug treatments, gene expression profiles and immune responses observed in the laboratory with clinical outcome data recorded in the CMCND. These projects have the potential to improve outcomes for our patients in the future by tailoring cancer treatments on a personalised level, so that each patient is treated based on the characteristics of their own tumour.

Team members

Head of department

Professor Paul McMurrick

Professor Paul McMurrick is a specialist colorectal surgeon who specialises in treatment of colorectal cancer, and benign colorectal conditions including inflammatory bowel disease, diverticular disease, perianal disease and pelvic floor disorders. He is a specialist in laparoscopic and minimally invasive surgery, and interventional colonoscopy, having trained in surgery at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne, Australia. A Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, Professor McMurrick is a member of ASCRS; he completed the Clinical Fellowship in Colon and Rectal Surgery at the Mayo Clinic, and is the Colorectal Tumour Stream leader for the MCCC. Professor McMurrick became Head of the Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery in 2009 where he leads the bowel cancer research activities at Cabrini, and is a member of the Let’s Beat Bowel Cancer committee.

Surgical staff (alphabetical order)

Mr Stephen Bell

Mr Stephen Bell is a colorectal surgeon with an interest in laparoscopic and robotic surgery. He treats colon and rectal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s and Ulcerative Colitis), diverticular disease and functional bowel disorders (incontinence and constipation), anorectal disorders (haemorrhoids, fistulae, and fissures), and hernias. Mr Bell is a member of the CSSANZ, and Chairman of the Gastrointestinal Cancer Committee, The Cancer Council; Editor of Gastrointestinal Cancer Update; and a Senior Lecturer in Surgery, Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery.

Mr Roger Berry

Mr Roger Berry is a General and HPB Surgeon specialising in surgery of the liver, gallbladder and biliary tree and pancreas. He performs all forms of liver, pancreatic and biliary surgery, with a major interest in hernia surgery—particularly laparoscopic abdominal wall and laparoscopic groin hernia surgery. Mr Berry also treats patients with acute abdominal pain, acute appendicitis, cholecystitis and obstructive jaundice.

Mr Peter Carne

Mr Peter Carne is a colorectal surgeon who specialises in the management of diseases of the colon, rectum and anus. Special interests include: colorectal cancer (including recurrent rectal cancer), appendiceal tumours, pelvic tumours (including pre-sacral tumours), inflammatory bowel disease, diverticular disease, stomas, rectal prolapse, and perianal conditions. Mr Carne’s technical areas of expertise include: open, robotic and laparoscopic colorectal surgery, colonoscopy, colonic stents, and transanal endoscopic microsurgery. He undertook his specialist training with the Colorectal Surgical Society of Australia and New Zealand (CSSANZ), including a Colorectal Fellowship at the Mayo Clinic in the USA. Mr Carne is a member of CSSANZ and International Fellow of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons. He is an Adjunct Senior Lecturer, Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery and Member Australasian Gastrointestinal Trials Group. He is the Director of the Colorectal Unit at The Alfred Hospital.

Mr Martin Chin

Mr Martin Chin is a member of CSSANZ and a colorectal surgeon with an interest in the diagnosis and management of conditions including colorectal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, and anorectal disease. Procedures performed include colorectal surgery, laparoscopic surgery, and colonoscopy.

Mr Chip Farmer

Mr Farmer is a specialist colorectal surgeon with extensive experience in the management of colorectal cancer. He has particular expertise in Transanal Endoscopic Microsurgery (a minimally invasive technique for the treatment of rectal tumours) and rectal ultrasound, and is actively involved in colorectal cancer research with interests in minimally invasive surgery, staging of colorectal cancer, anal cancers and surgical audit.

Emeritus Professor Adrian Polglase

Emeritus Professor Adrian Polglase is a colorectal surgeon specialising in the treatment of benign and malignant bowel conditions, laparoscopic (keyhole) surgery, and colonoscopy together with common anorectal conditions including haemorrhoids, fistulae and fissures. He is a specialist in colorectal surgery, colonoscopy, and laparoscopy—and Emeritus Professor of Surgery. He assumed full-time practice at Cabrini Hospital in 1995 and was appointed Clinical Dean the same year. Adrian is a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and is well published. His surgical treatments and results are regularly published in peer-reviewed journals. In 1998, Adrian was appointed Professor of Surgery and Head of the Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery; the appointment was the first of its kind in the private sector in Australia. He stepped down as in 2009 and appointed Emeritus Professor by Monash University. Professor Polglase is Patron and Founder of Let’s Beat Bowel Cancer.

Mr Pravin Ranchod

Mr Ranchod is a specialist Colorectal and Advanced Laparoscopic Surgeon who provides consultative discussion and surgical management for all types of colorectal and perianal disorders. His practice focuses on surgery for colorectal cancer laparoscopic surgery, colonoscopy, anal fistula and management of pelvic floor disorders and incontinence, including sacral nerve stimulation.

Mr Paul Simpson

Mr Simpson is a specialist Colorectal Surgeon and a member of the Colorectal Surgical Society of Australia and New Zealand. Mr Simpson completed his medicine/law degree at Monash University in 2002. He then trained in General Surgery at The Alfred Hospital in Melbourne before becoming a Fellow of the Royal Australian College of Surgeons in 2011. He completed two years of specialist colorectal training as a member of the Australian & New Zealand Colorectal Fellowship Training Program. This was followed by an international Colorectal Fellowship at the world renowned Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA.

Mr Simpson is widely published in the field of colorectal surgery and has an active interest in education and research. He currently holds public appointments at the Western Hospital and Alfred Health. Mr Simpson has a particular interest in minimally invasive colorectal surgery and enhanced post-operative recovery. His specific skills are laparoscopic (keyhole) surgery, robotic and trans-anal microsurgery techniques, which are all designed to expedite recovery and improve patient outcomes. He has advanced training in complex pelvic surgery and the surgical management of inflammatory bowel disease.

Mr Raymond Yap

Mr Raymond Yap is a consultant Colorectal and General Surgeon at Cabrini Health, specialising in the care of colorectal diseases such as colorectal cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, perianal pathology and advanced colonoscopy. A Fellow of the Colorectal Surgical Society of Australia and New Zealand, he is also a steering committee member of the Binational Colorectal Cancer Audit and honorary research fellow with Monash University. In addition to the Australian sub-speciality training he received, he completed advanced training in robotic and transanal techniques (including ta-TME) at Adventhealth in Orlando, Florida. He has conducted numerous studies into colorectal cancer outcomes and surgical education, with a multitude of publications and book chapters.

Academic staff (alphabetical order)

Dr Rebekah Engel

Dr Engel undertook a Bachelor of Biomolecular Science at Griffith University followed by a Bachelor of Science (Hons) majoring in Biochemistry at the University of Queensland. Dr Engel graduated with a PhD in Immunology from the University of Queensland in 2012 where she investigated the genetics controlling the course of herpesvirus infection in humans. In her first postdoctoral position, Dr Engel worked as a Research Officer in the Cellular Immunology Laboratory at QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Brisbane. Here she investigated the functional influence of naturally occurring polymorphism in T cell receptor genes on protective immunity. Since joining the Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery in November 2016, Dr Engel has been working on a collaborative project with Professor Helen Abud and her team at the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute. In this role she has led the establishment of an extensive bio-resource of patient-derived organoids, or “mini-tumours”, from colorectal cancer patients. These organoids are a powerful tool for cancer research and are being used for the development of personalised cancer medicine strategies. This will see each patient treated based on the characteristics of their own tumour, which will not only improve outcomes but reduce unnecessary side effects. Find out more about Dr Engel’s research: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1951-547X

Dr Christine Georges

Dr Georges (née Koulis) has completed a Bachelor of Science Degree at the University of Melbourne, majoring in Pharmacology and Pathology – after which she completed her Honours Degree in Pharmaceutical Science at the Victorian Collage of Pharmacy (Monash University), specialising in the role of protease-activated receptors in the immune system. In 2004, she was awarded the Victorian Collage of Pharmacy Honour’s prize along with a prestigious Melbourne Research Scholarship to study for a PhD at the University of Melbourne. Her PhD involved investigating the role of protease-activated receptors in tumour growth (colon and melanoma), experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis and skin transplantation.

At the completion of her PhD in 2008, Dr Georges undertook her first post-doctoral position at Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Research Institute in Melbourne. Her role involved research on diabetes-associated atherosclerosis with a focus on advanced glycation end-products and toll-like receptors. Dr Georges has published her research in a number of high impact medical journals including Circulation, Hypertension and Diabetes Metabolism and is an invited reviewer for a number of journals including Diabetes and Diabetologia.

Her work has allowed her to establish an international profile with a number of invited presentations at major national and international meetings, including Life Sciences Conference, The Australian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists and Toxicologists (ASCEPT), The Australian Health and Medical Research Congress (AHMRC), International Conference on Coronary Artery Disease, International Diabetes Federation (IDF), The Australian Atherosclerosis Society and The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. In addition, Dr Georges has also lectured and tutored at The University of Melbourne and Monash University.

In 2016, Dr Georges joined the Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery at Cabrini Health with a focus on translational research and improving colorectal cancer patient outcomes. Currently, Dr Georges is involved in two main projects. The first is the Patient Reported Outcome Measures or PROMs program which aims to personalise patient care by providing valuable information from a patient’s perspective on their treatment, wellbeing and quality of life. The second project is the colorectal tissue microarray (TMA) project which will allow the translation of various biomarkers into clinical outcomes. In future, biomarker analysis may assist in personalising the most effective treatment for patients. Find out more about Dr Georges’ research: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3651-7621

Dr Simon Wilkins

Dr Wilkins obtained his PhD in the biology of malaria in the mosquito from Imperial College, London in 1997. Following his first post-doctoral position on breast cancer, he worked on a varied theme of brain-related diseases including cerebral malaria, neurodegenerative eye diseases, and prion diseases. Dr Wilkins immigrated to Australia in 2004 and joined a commercial research team based at the Mental Health Research Institute investigating potential treatments for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. In 2009, he joined the Monash Institute of Medical Research (now Hudson Institute) to investigate a paediatric developmental disorder, as well as studying the biochemical and molecular basis of cancers such as glioblastoma, medulloblastoma, and osteosarcoma. In 2012 Dr Wilkins joined Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine (DEPM), Monash University at the Alfred Hospital managing of a number of clinical-quality blood disease registries. Dr Wilkins continues to be an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at DEPM. Dr Wilkins joined the Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery in 2013 and his role focuses purely on research – including both clinical and translational research projects related to bowel cancer. Dr Wilkins brings to our Cabrini team twenty years of academic training and expertise which adds great value to our research program. Find out more about Dr Wilkins’ research: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7712-4114

Administrative and management staff

Mr John Paul Plazzer – Database Manager

John Paul holds a degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Melbourne and a Bioinformatics diploma from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. His career began by developing laboratory information management systems, then expanded into bioinformatics and various research projects with a focus on human genetics. He has extensive experience as a database curator combined with a strong background in database management and development.

Since 2011, he has been a database curator for the International Society for Gastrointestinal Hereditary Tumours (InSiGHT) which maintains the most comprehensive database of DNA variants that contribute to inherited gastrointestinal cancer. An important contribution was facilitating the clinical classification of Lynch Syndrome variants, as determined by the InSiGHT Variant Interpretation Committee which resulted in publication in Nature Genetics in 2014. John Paul has also supported international research projects including the Prospective Lynch Syndrome Database, Colon Cancer Family Register, and the Human Variome Project to improve our understanding of the genetics of colorectal cancer.

With this experience, he assisted with the development of database systems to store and curate Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) data, including the deployment of the prototype database used for the initial Melbourne Genomics flagship projects. John Paul has been instrumental in the creation of the InSiGHT Variant Curation Expert Panel and new classification guidelines for mismatch repair gene variants. Grants held by John Paul include Hugh Rogers Fellowship, CASS foundation grant, grant-subaward for Colon Cancer Family Registry Cohort and a Royal Melbourne Hospital Alan Watt Fellowship in Colorectal Cancer.

In 2022, John Paul joined the Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery at Cabrini Health as the Database Manager for the Cabrini Monash Colorectal Neoplasia Database. Find out more about Mr Plazzer’s research: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5114-4301

Dr Stefanie Elbracht-Leong – Database Manager

Dr Stefanie Elbracht-Leong studied physics at the Karlsruhe University, Germany. Stefanie was awarded a master’s degree working on A Toroidal LCH Apparatus (ATLAS) and the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiments at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in Switzerland. At the completion of her masters, she moved to Australia and completed a PhD at the University of Melbourne. The focus of her thesis was the development and improvement of a new next generation state of-the-art X-ray imaging detector. Stefanie’ studies were done in collaboration with the Paul-Scherrer Institute in Villigen, Switzerland. As her first post-doctoral role, Stefanie joined Australian Genomics, a National Health Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funded project on genomics research in rare diseases and cancers administered by the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI). Stefanie’s role at MCRI was data coordinator and governance officer. As part of her responsibilities, she oversaw the implementation and compliance of data governance policies related to the 18 flagship studies, as well as data management for those flagships.

At the start of 2021, Stefanie joined Cabrini Research as the data manager for the lung cancer registry, developing a comprehensive database to collect information on diagnosis, treatment and outcomes of all Cabrini Hospital’s patient suffering lung cancer. She is working in collaboration with the Victorian Lung Cancer Registry. Later in 2021, Stefanie was invited to join the Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery at Cabrini Hospital to manage the Cabrini Monash Colorectal Neoplasia Database (CMCND). The CMCND has been collecting data on colorectal neoplasia patient’s diagnosis and treatment since 2010. It now has a comprehensive dataset for Cabrini Health and other Monash affiliated hospitals. In 2013, the Colorectal Surgical Society of Australia and New Zealand (CSSANZ) developed the Bi-National Colorectal Cancer Audit (BCCA), a duplicate version based on a minimal dataset of the CMCND, with participation from over 435 contributors across Australia and New Zealand. Find out more about Dr Elbracht-Leong’s research: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2907-900X

Flagship research projects

Colorectal cancer organoids to personalise patient care

The Colorectal Cancer Organoid Program is a collaborative effort between the Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery, led by Professor Paul McMurrick, and the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute’s Epithelial Regeneration Laboratory, led by Professor Helen Abud. Colorectal cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death in Australia. In order to increase survival rates for colorectal cancer we need to apply current therapies effectively and develop new treatment targets. A personalised cancer medicine approach could transform therapeutic management of disease through individualised treatment strategies tailored for each patient, providing the greatest possible benefit with the fewest side-effects. Our research aims to predict patient sensitivity to common treatment regimens using a three-dimensional tissue model of a patients’ tumour, called organoids. Organoids are essentially “mini-tumours” which can be grown in a dish from tissue biopsies that mimic the features of the tissue from which they are derived. This powerful model can be used to test common cancer therapeutics to determine if a patient is likely to respond to treatment.

Another exciting project, led by postdoctoral researcher Dr Rebekah Engel, focuses on predicting complete pathological response for patients with rectal cancer. Up to 25 per cent of patients with rectal cancer who are treated with chemoradiotherapy achieve a pathologic complete response, with histological examination reporting no residual tumour. In the absence of residual tumour, these patients could be spared from radical surgery to remove all or part of the rectum. The impact on quality of life following surgery is significant with patients experiencing sexual and urinary dysfunction, defecation difficulties and colostomy complications. This project aims to predict which patients are likely to achieve a complete pathological response through chemo- and radio-sensitivity testing on their own tumour-derived organoids. This research has potential to be practice-changing, providing clinicians with a technique to identify patients who could be managed through a non-surgical “watch and wait” approach, ultimately sparing these patients from unnecessary surgery, preserving organ function and improving quality of life.

Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs) to personalise treatment

Information on how the treatment of colorectal cancer may affect various aspects of a patient’s quality of life through patient reported measures is lacking. Currently, the Cabrini Monash Colorectal Neoplasia Database does not include Patient Reported Outcome Measures or PROMs data. This program will allow the International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement (ICHOM) colorectal cancer set of Patient-Centred Outcome Measures to be incorporated into the database and allow direct patient entry of PROMs data on all aspects of care.

This program aims to correlate PROMs data with clinical data which will enable valuable information about the quality of life of patients with colorectal cancer pre- and post- treatment to be utilised within the consultation to improve the communication between surgeons and patients, allowing for more informed choices on the course of treatment and improved patient outcomes.

Download the PROMs patient information booklet

Tissue Microarrays to assess predictive and prognostic biomarkers in colorectal cancer patients

Colorectal cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths worldwide. When colorectal cancer patient outcomes are examined, even when controlled for similar pre-operative prognostic features, tumour stage and clinicopathological characteristics, clinical outcomes and drug responses are can vary greatly between patients. The challenge confronting clinicians is determining the best treatment for each patient which will produce the best outcome based on the characteristics of their cancer. Cancer cells often produce different proteins – also known as biomarkers – when compared with normal cells. An understanding of the impact of key predictive and prognostic biomarkers is an essential part in advancing personalised treatment of colorectal cancer. One method of examining biomarkers in cancer is through the use of a Tissue Microarray (TMA).

TMAs were first developed around 30 years ago as a method of examining multiple sources of tissue on a single histological slide. TMAs provide a high throughput, cost-effective and often rapid way of testing a range of tissues simultaneously and have been most effective in testing human cancer. TMAs have become a key tool for the testing and development of new cancer biomarkers. Typically, the proteins and DNA/RNA on TMAs are tested through laboratory techniques known as ‘immunohistochemistry’ and ‘in situ hybridisation’.

This project aims to determine whether analysis of prognostic and predictive biomarkers on a TMA may predict clinical outcomes in patients with colon cancer. The results of the TMA laboratory analyses will be matched to each patients’ clinical data on the Cabrini Monash Colorectal Neoplasia database (a database where patients have consented to have their clinical data included) which together will provide a wealth of information.

There are two phases to this project, the construction of the TMA’s and tissue analysis utilising two laboratory techniques, immunohistochemistry and In situ hybridisation.

Immunohistochemistry – A technique to use specific antibodies to detect proteins, also known as biomarkers, in cancer tissues. In the future, it is hoped this will allow us to determine the best treatment for each patient. This can potentially tell researchers and ultimately, clinicians, which biomarkers correspond to cancer relapse or which will have a favourable response to chemotherapy.
In situ A technique to detect RNA (ribonucleic acid-the messenger in the cell to tell cells to make proteins) in cancer tissues. This part of the project looks at whether a certain type of RNA is present in cancer cells of the colon tumour and in the cancer cells that have spread to other tissues – such as the liver.

This study will demonstrate the prognostic and predictive significance of a panel of biomarkers in patients with colon and rectal cancer. It is hoped that the results from this study may contribute to practical decision-making in the treatment of colorectal cancer. In the forthcoming age of personalised medicine, TMAs will provide a valuable resource to validate and test new cancer biomarkers, not only to provide the best treatment options for a patient but also to highlight potential new targets for future more effective therapies.

2022

Engel RM, Oliva K, Centauri S, Wang W, McMurrick P, Yap R. (2022) Impact of anastomotic leak on long-term oncological outcomes after restorative surgery for rectal cancer: a retrospective cohort study. Dis Colon Rectum. (Accepted)
Nefzger, CM.*, Jardé, T,*, Srivastava, A., Schroeder, J., Rossello, FJ., Horvay, K., Prasko, M., Paynter, JM., Chen, J., Weng, C., Sun, YBY., Liu, X., Chan, E., Deshpande, N., Chen,X., Li, YJ., Pflueger, J., Engel, RM., Knaupp, AS., Tsyganov, K., Nilsson, SK., Lister, R., Rackham, OJL., Abud, HE.#, Polo, JM.# (2022) Intestinal stem cell aging signature reveals a reprogramming strategy to enhance regenerative potential. npj Regen Med 7, 31 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41536-022-00226-7
Yan, H., Vail, M.E., Hii, L., Guo, N., McMurrick, P.J., Oliva, K., Wilkins, S., Saha, N., Nikolov, D.B., Lee, F-T., Scott, A.M., Janes, P.W. (2022) Preferential antibody and drug conjugate targeting of the ADAM10 metalloprotease in tumours. Cancers 14(13) 3171
Baqar, A.R., Wilkins, S., Wang, W., Oliva, K., Centauri, S., Yap, R., McMurrick, P.J. (2022) A comparison of extracorporeal side-to-side or end-to-side anastomosis following laparoscopic right hemicolectomy for colon cancer. ANZ Journal of Surgery 92(6):1472-1479
Engel, R.M., Jarde, T., Oliva, K., Kerr, G., Chan, W.H., Hlavca, S., Nickless, D., Archer, S., Yap, R., Ranchod, P., Bell, S., Koulis, C., Wilkins, S., Dale, T.C., Hollins, A.J., McMurrick, P.J., Abud, H.E. (2022) Modelling colorectal cancer: a bioresource of 50 patient-derived organoid lines. Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology 37(5):898-907
Wilkins, S., Yap, R., Mendis, S., Carne, P., McMurrick, P. (2022) Surgical techniques for abdominoperineal resection for rectal cancer: One size does not fit all. Frontiers in Surgery. doi.org/10.3389/fsurg.2022.818097

2021

Prabhakaran S, Kong JC, Williams E, Bell S, Warrier S, Simpson P, Chin M, Skinner S, Carne P. Comparison of colorectal cancer outcomes in young adults and octogenarians. Am J Surg. 2021 Aug 12:S0002-9610(21)00472-4. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjsurg.2021.08.013
Williams, E., Kong, J.C., Singh, P., Prabhakaran, S., Warrier, S.K. and Bell, S. (2021), The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on colorectal cancer diagnosis and management: a Binational Colorectal Cancer Audit study. ANZ Journal of Surgery, 91: 2091-2096. https://doi.org/10.1111/ans.17071
Solon, J.G., Oliva, K., Farmer, K.C., Wang, W., Wilkins, S. and McMurrick, P.J. (2021), Rectum versus colon: should malignant polyps be treated differently? ANZ Journal of Surgery, 91: 927-931. https://doi.org/10.1111/ans.16437
Baker, A.T., Abuwarwar, M.H., Poly, L., Wilkins, S., Fletcher, A.L. (2021) Cancer-Associated Fibroblasts and T Cells: From Mechanisms to Outcomes. J Immunol. 206(2):310-320. https://doi.org/10.4049/jimmunol.2001203. PMID: 33397745.

2020

Wilkins, S., Oliva, K., Chowdhury, E., Ruggiero, B., Bennett, A., Andrews, E.J., Dent, O., Chapuis, P., Platell, C., Reid, C. McMurrick, P.J. (2020) Australasian ACPGBI risk prediction models for 30-day mortality after surgery for colorectal cancer. BJS Open 4(6): 1208-1216
Jardé, T., Chan, W.H., Rossello, F.J., Kahlon, T.K., Theocharous, M., Arackal, T.K., Flores, T., Giraud, M., Richards, E., Chan, E., Kerr, G., Engel, R., Prasko, M., Donoghue, J.F., Abe, S., Phesse, T.J., Nefzger, C.M., McMurrick P.J., Powell, D.R., Daly, R.J., Polo, JM. and Abud, H.E. (2020) Mesenchymal niche-derived NRG1 drives intestinal stem cell proliferation and epithelial regeneration following damage. Cell Stem Cell. https://doi:10.1016/j.stem.2020.06.021.
Baqar, A.R., Wilkins, S., Wang, W., Oliva, K., McMurrick, P.J. (2020) Log odds of positive lymph nodes is prognostically equivalent to lymph node ratio in non-metastatic colon cancer. BMC Cancer 20:762
Engel, RM., Oliva, K., Koulis, C., Yap, R., McMurrick, PJ. (2020) Predictive factors of complete pathological response in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer. Int J Col Dis. doi:10.1007/s00384-020-03633-8.
Baqar, A.R., Wilkins, S., Staples, M., Oliva, K., McMurrick, P.J. (2020) The post-operative impact of over-sewing stapled anastomoses in colorectal cancer surgery. International Journal of Surgery Open 24:1-5
Koulis, C., Yap, R., Engel, R., Jardé, T., Wilkins, S., Solon, G., Shapiro, J.D., Abud, H., McMurrick, P. (2020) Personalized Medicine—Current and Emerging Predictive and Prognostic Biomarkers in Colorectal Cancer. Cancers. 12 (4): 812; doi:10.3390/cancers12040812.
Mileto, S., Jardé, T., Childress, K.O., Jensen, J.L., Roger, A.P., Kerr, G., Hutton, M.L., Sheedlo, M.J., Bloch, S.C., Shupe, J.A., Horvay, K., Flores, T., Engel, R., Wilkins, S., McMurrick, P.J., Borden Lacy, D., Abud, H.E., Lyras, D. (2020) Clostridioides difficile infection damages colonic stem cells via TcdB, impairing epithelial repair and recovery from disease. PNAS. 117(14): 8064-8073. doi:10.1073/pnas.1915255117.
Rudloff, I., Jarde, T., Bachmann, M., Kerr, G., Engel, R., Oliva, K., Wilkins, S., McMurrick, P., Abud, H., Muhl, H., Nold M., (2020) Molecular signature of interlukin-22 in colon carcinoma cells and organoid models. Translational Research 2020; 216:1-22.

2019

Engel, R.M., Chen, W.H., Nickless, D., Hlavca, S., Richards, E., Kerr, G., Oliva, K., McMurrick, P.J., Jarde, T., Abud, H.E. (2019) Patient-derived colorectal cancer organoids upregulate revival stem cell marker genes following chemotherapeutic treatment. Journal of Clinical Medicine 9, 128; doi:10.3390/jcm9010128
Baqar, A.R., Wilkins, S., Staples, M., Lee, C.H.A., Oliva, K., McMurrick, P.J. (2019) The role of preoperative CEA in the management of colorectal cancer: a cohort study from two cancer centres. International Journal of Surgery 64:10-15

2018

Wilkins, S., Yap, R., Loon, K., Staples, M., Oliva, K., Ruggiero, B., McMurrick, P., Carne, P. (2018) Surgical outcome after standard abdominoperineal resection: A 15-year cohort study from a single cancer centre. Annals of Medicine and Surgery 36: 83-89
Lee, C.H.A., Wilkins, S., Oliva, K., Staples, M., McMurrick, P.J. (2018) The role of lymph node yield and lymph node ratio in predicting outcomes in non-metastatic colorectal cancer. BJS Open DOI: 10.1002/bjs5.96
Bell, S., Kong, J.C., Staples, M., Oliva, K., Wilkins, S., Wale, R., McMurrick, P.J., Warrier, S.K. (2018) The effect of increasing body mass index on laparoscopic surgery for colon and rectal cancer. Colorectal Disease DOI: 10.1111/codi.14107
McCombie A.M., Frizelle, F., Bagshaw, P.F., Frampton, C.M., Hewett P.J., McMurrick, P.J., Rieger, N., Solomon, M.J., Stevenson, A.R., ALCCaS Trial group (2018) The ALCCaS Trial: A Randomized controlled trial comparing quality of life following laparoscopic versus open colectomy for colon cancer. Diseases of the Colon & Rectum 61:1156-1162
Grant, M., Haydon, A., Au, L., Wilkins, S., Oliva, K., Segelov, E., Antill, Y., Carne, P., Ranchod, P., Polglase, A., Farmer, C., Chin, M., Wale, R., Simpson, P., Bell, S., Skinner, S., McMurrick, P., Shapiro, J. (2018) Immunohistochemistry testing for mismatch repair deficiency in Stage 2 colon cancer; a cohort study of two cancer centres. DOI 10.1016/j.ijsu.2018.01.020

2017

McMurrick, P.J., Richardson, G., Yap, R. (2017) How to Treat: Bowel Cancer Part 2 – Management. Australian Doctor. 9 June 2017, 21-28.
McMurrick, P.J., Richardson, G., Yap, R. (2017) How to Treat: Bowel Cancer Part 1 – Diagnosis. Australian Doctor. 2 June 2017, 17-24.
Patwardhan, A., Wilkins, S., Staples, M., McMurrick, P. (2017) Written instructions to patients to confirm pathology results; is effective in the transmission of results? ANZ Journal of Surgery. DOI 10.1111/ans.13892

2022

Margaret Walkom Trust
Improving outcomes for bowel cancer patients through the patient-reported outcome measures program.
CI Dr Christine Georges
Funding provided $90,000

2021

The CASS Foundation
Using patient-derived tumouroids to guide “watch and wait” approach in rectal cancer
CI Dr Rebekah Engel
Funding provided $57,000

Cabrini Foundation Research Grant
Personalising cancer medicine part II: Expanding the organoid program to include treatment-exposed metastatic colorectal cancer.’
CIs R Engel, S Mendis, P McMurrick, H Abud
Funding provided $30,000

Cabrini Foundation Research Grant
Regulation of the immune response in the colorectal cancer tumour microenvironment and its role in patient outcomes
CIs Wilkins S, Fletcher A, Georges C, McMurrick P.
Funding provided $30,000

2020

Cabrini Foundation Research Grant
Personalising cancer medicine: the development of a high throughput drug screening platform using patient-derived colorectal cancer organoids
Dr Rebekah Engel, Prof Paul McMurrick
Funding provided $30,000

2019

Eirene Lucas Foundation
Anti-cancer compound library resource for drug discovery
Dr Rebekah Engel, Prof Paul McMurrick
Funding provided $10,000

Alan, Ada and Eva Selwyn Clinical Research Grant
Personalised medicine for colorectal cancer patients: Utilisation of Organoid Technology, Tissue micro-arrays and consensus molecular subtypes
CIs Dr Christine Georges, Dr Rebekah Engel, Karen Oliva, Prof Paul McMurrick
Funding provided $30,000

Cabrini Foundation Research Grant
Developing a new tissue-slice assay for modelling colorectal cancer tumours
Dr Simon Wilkins, Dr Anne Fletcher, Dr Kostas Knoblich, Prof Paul McMurrick
Funding provided $30,000

2018

Cabrini Clinical Research Grant
Using patient-derived organoids to guide the nonsurgical “watch and wait” approach for rectal cancer
CIs Dr Rebekah Engel, Prof Paul McMurrick
Funding provided $30,000

Cancer Australia Grant
Translating colorectal cancer organoids into patient care
CIs Abud, Worthley, Burgess, McMurrick, Firestein, Gibbs, Clevers, Price, Padbury, Hewett
Funding provided $597,556

2017

Margaret Walkom Trust
Genetic testing of colorectal cancer
CIs Dr Christine Georges, Dr Simon Wilkins, Prof Paul McMurrick
Funding provided $30,000

The Collie Foundation
Colorectal cancer organoids project
CIs Prof Paul McMurrick, Prof Helen Abud, Dr Simon Wilkins, Dr Rebekah Engel, Ms Karen Oliva
Funding provided $300,000

Urquhart Charitable Fund
Project funding to develop patient education with a view to expanding uptake of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program (NBCSP).
CI Prof Paul McMurrick
Funding provided $14,490

2016

The Collie Foundation
Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs)
CIs Prof Paul McMurrick, Dr Simon Wilkins, Ms Karen Oliva
Funding provided $40,000

Margaret Walkom Trust
Project: Genetic testing of colorectal cancer
CIs Prof Paul McMurrick, Dr Simon Wilkins
Funding provided $30,000

Victorian Cancer Agency (VCA) Translational Research Project
Super-enhanced template RNAs as predictive biomarkers of BET inhibitor sensitivity in prostate and colorectal cancer.
Dr Arun Azad, Dr Ron Firestein, Prof Helen Abud, Prof Paul McMurrick, Prof Gail Risbridger, Dr Simon Wilkins
Funding provided $2 million

CSSANZ grant
ADIPOSe- Australasian Decrease in Intra-Pelvic Obesity for Surgery Trial- Using VLED’s to reduce weight and improve outcomes in obese individuals undertaking rectal cancer surgery
CIs Mr Stephen Bell, Prof Paul McMurrick and Dr Simon Wilkins
Funding provided $100,000

2015

Cabrini Foundation Grant
ADIPOSe- Australasian Decrease in Intra-Pelvic Obesity for Surgery Trial- Using VLED’s to reduce weight and improve outcomes in obese individuals undertaking rectal cancer surgery
CIs Mr Stephen Bell, Prof Paul McMurrick, Dr Simon Wilkins
Funding provided $50,000

NHMRC Project Grant Application APP1100531
“Defining the function of Snai1 in stem cells and colorectal cancer”.
CIs H. Abud, G. Hime, L. Jones, P. McMurrick, V. Perreau
Funding provided $646,698

2011

NHMRC Project Grant Application APP1010429,
“Functional studies on the role of DNp73 in stem cells and cancer”.
Cis H. Abud, G. Hime, T. Stiewe, P.J. McMurrick.
Funding provided $414,208

NHMRC Development Grant Application APP1017078
“Blood based diagnostic assay for diagnosis of colorectal cancer”.
Chief Investigator (CIE) P McMurrick
Funding provided $542,260

2002

NHMRC Grant Application 207815,
“Australasian Multi Centered Prospective Randomised Study of Laparoscopic Versus Conventional Surgical Treatment of Colon Cancer”.
CIs P Hewett, N Rieger, A Stevenson, M Solomon, P McMurrick, P Bagshaw.
Funding provided $495,000

1999

Cabrini Clinical Education and Research Foundation Research Grant
Title of Project, ‘Determining the Incidence and Clinical Correlations of Micro Satellite Instability in Colorectal Cancers in Patients Under the Age of 50 Years’.
CIs PJ McMurrick, H Debinski, A Polglase

New discoveries and research focus

Cabrini Monash Colorectal Neoplasia Database (CMCND)

Established by Professor Paul McMurrick in 2010, the Cabrini Monash Colorectal Neoplasia Database (CMCND), was the first internet browser-based database of its kind in Australia and provides the basis for our research and quality assurance programs. Collecting extensive patient data relating to family history, genetic abnormalities, background co-morbidity, treatment and long-term outcome and follow-up. The CMCND continues to be the flagship for our department providing a platform for translational research studies, quality improvement and guiding patient care. The database was adopted by the Colorectal Surgical Society of Australia and New Zealand in 2013 as the Binational Colorectal Cancer Audit (BCCA). The BCCA is now well established with over 170 contributing sites across Australia and New Zealand participating in this program.

Read about the program

Cabrini Monash University Department of Surgery

About the surgery research department

Team members

Flagship research projects

2022

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2021

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2011

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1999

New discoveries and research focus

Cabrini Monash Colorectal Neoplasia Database (CMCND)

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