The Melanoma and Cancer Translational Research Group (MCTRG) focuses on bridging discovery and clinical application to improve outcomes for people with melanoma and other complex cancers. While our projects span a wide range of approaches, from biomarker discovery and diagnostic tool development to novel therapeutic strategies, most are united by three key questions:

1. Is it melanoma/cancer? – developing accurate diagnostic tools to distinguish melanoma from benign disease.

2. If it is cancer, will it recur after surgical removal? – identifying biomarkers and predictive models to determine recurrence risk and guide adjuvant and neoadjuvant decisions.

3. If it does recur, what systemic drug therapy will work? – understanding mechanisms of response and resistance to drug therapies including immunotherapy and developing strategies for more personalised treatment.

Many of our projects fall under one or more of these themes, using cutting-edge technologies such as single-cell and spatial multi-omics, multiplex tissue imaging, computational modelling, AI - powered tools, and advanced preclinical models.