Investigating the radioresistant properties of cancer specific resident T Cells

Dr Susan’s 2023 grant is funded by Cure Cancer

She is a Senior Research Officer at The University of Melbourne, graduating with a PhD from the University of South Australia in 2015.

Dr Susan Christo’s research specialises in Immunology. She is driven by her fascination in understanding why the immune system fails, particularly in the context of cancer, and how can we use immunology to solve cancer problems, such as the negative side effects of radiation therapy (one of the most common forms of cancer treatments).

Dr Susan Christo's research

Radiotherapy uses radiation to kill cells by irreparably damaging their DNA. However, one of the issues with radiotherapy is that it kills everything – not just the cancer cells, but also the nearby healthy cells, including immune cells that are fighting the cancer.

Dr Susan’s team are looking to approach this issue from a novel angle – rather than ‘how do we kill the bad cancer cells?’ they want to understand what needs to be done to keep the good immune cells alive.

The team have discovered that some types of immune cells are able to survive irradiation through a currently unknown process. In this project, Dr Susan hopes to identify the way in which these cells are able to survive large amounts of radiation that kill most other cells. This discovery would form the foundation for future research which could develop a ‘molecular shield’ for immune cells that would protect them while the cancer is being treated with radiotherapy. 

”Our unpublished observation that cancer-fighting resident immune cells can resist radiation therapy is a  novel finding that may lead to improved cancer treatments. Critically, we hope that our results will yield translatable outcomes. By equipping a patient’s own cancer fighting T cells with the ‘molecular shields’ that we uncover to resist irradiation, we hope to improve and hasten tumour clearance, and restore a patient’s quality of life through long lasting immune responses,” she says.

The importance of cancer research funding

Innovation in cancer treatment requires two things: research and resources. We have the researchers, we just need more resources. One of the biggest challenges facing early career researchers is the lack of continued funding.  Cure Cancer recognises these struggles and prioritises making an impact to people living with cancer, placing less emphasis on robotic stats that don’t measure how meaningful the research will be to the cancer community who need it the most.  

”Receiving a Cure Cancer Grant is one of the most rewarding and exciting opportunities of my career. This funding will allow me to address critical questions about how immune cells respond to radiation therapy – one of the most common treatments, but understudied in the context of immune responses,” Dr Susan tells us.

”Research is more than just a job – it becomes a purpose. We are privileged every day to make discoveries that can change the world around us, but critically, help our loved ones that have lived with cancer.”

“I’m constantly motivated by the need to help people who have suffered from cancer. I want to provide hope that one day soon there will be new and improved options that can permanently eliminate tumours for better quality of life.”

Together, we can cure cancer.

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