Funded projects

To undertake N406.1, Pharmacology for Nurse Prescribing in Speciality Practice, and N403.5, Integrated Practicum, at Otago Polytechnic in 2007

To attend "Cancer Survivorship: Embracing the Future", sponsored by the American Cancer Society, the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Lance Armstrong Foundation. to be held in Bethesda,Maryland, USA, October 4-6, 2006

To attend the "Hospice & Palliative Care Study Seminar in Britain"

To complete two Masters papers in 2007 which will conclude the required number of papers required for a Masters in Nursing (Clinical) through Victoria University in Wellington

To attend the American Association for Cancer Research 98th Annual Meeting, April 14-18, 2007, Los Angeles, CA, USA

To attend three scientific meetings in Lorne, Australia, in February 2007. The 12th Annual Proteomics Symposium, 2-4th February 2007. The 32nd Lorne Conference on Protein Structure and Function, 4-8th February 2007. The 19th Lorne Cancer Conference, 8th-10th February

To participate in the 4th International Multidisciplinary Conference on Spirituality and Health, Vancouver, BC, Canada

To undertake a Master's Degree and training in Nurse Colposcopist role required to become Nurse Practitioner in Women's Health

To undertake a clinical attachment at St. Columba's Hospice, Edinburgh, to experience Palliative Care in a larger setting, and one in which there is considerable experience of academic excellence and research

Neuroblastoma Modeling - Towards Development of Targeted Therapy for High Risk Neuroblastoma - Clinical and Research Training Fellowship to be undertaken at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, USA.

The role of the B-raf oncogene in the behaviour and resistance to apoptosis of human melanoma cell lines.

Metastatic melanoma is a serious disease of great significance to New Zealand because of its association with exposure to sunlight. It is very resistant to treatment and it is thought that a particular gene called BRAF, which is mutated in about in 70% of melanomas, is one of the main culprits. This project takes advantage of our unique resource of over 40 melanoma cell lines that we have developed from individual melanoma patients, and we will use these to study the role of BRAF in detail. The results will help our overall quest to develop new treatments for melanoma.

Studies of Melanoma Precursor Cells

The skin cancer melanoma develops when the cells that form pigment in the skin, the melanocytes, become cancerous. To understand how these cells become cancerous, we need to be able to grow human melanocytes in the laboratory. This project will develop new techniques to grow human melanocytes, both from healthy human skin and also from moles excised from the skin. Studying how these cells behave in the laboratory will suggest new ways to detect pre-cancerous melanoma, and new targets for melanoma prevention and therapy.

To undertake the N406 Applied Pharmacology for Nursing Practice at Otago Polytechnic. This is a post-graduate paper and is part of a pathway towards a Masters Degree in Nursing with a Palliative Care specialty, with the ultimate aim of becoming a Nurse Practitioner in Palliative Care.

To attend the 9th International Electronic Portal Imaging Meeting, being held at Melbourne, 9th to 11th April 2006.The workshop/meeting is being held over three days and the organising committee have confirmed at least five international speakers with expertise in the field of EPI, treatment verification systems. The meeting will have sessions relevant to both Radiation therapists and medical physicists.

To attend the 97th annual meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) in Washington DC between 1-5 April 2006 and to present some of the results of her PhD research at this forum. The AACR annual meeting is the largest international conference on cancer research worldwide and attracts approximately 15,000 delegates.