QUT offers a diverse range of student topics for Honours, Masters and PhD study. Search to find a topic that interests you or propose your own research topic to a prospective QUT supervisor. You may also ask a prospective supervisor to help you identify or refine a research topic.
Found 46 matching student topics
Displaying 1–12 of 46 results
Polymer theranostics for nanomedicine
The personalised treatment of disease though nanomedicine will allow for more effective and safer treatments for patients. Polymer theranostics provide for the simultaneous detection of disease, treatment, and monitoring of therapeutic response. Our research group synthesises new polymeric materials and investigates how they can be used in applications such as:potent antivirals to fight future pandemicsthe effect of radiation on materials for improved radiotherapy for cancerresponsive imaging agents that can report on metabolic processes of diseasecharacterizing the interaction of polymeric materials …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Chemistry and Physics
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Materials Science
Capturing the impact of patient variability in a novel cancer treatment
In 2015, the Food and Drug Association (FDA) approved a lab-engineered virus for the treatment of melanoma (skin cancer). Since then, there has been a significant increase in the number of lab-grown viruses that are being tested in clinical trials as potential treatments of cancer. Unfortunately, it seems that a large number of patients in these clinical trials fail under this treatment and currently there is no way to distinguish between responders and non-responders to treatment.Fortunately, we can use mathematics …
- Study level
- Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Mathematical Sciences
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Data Science
Optimising delivery of a novel nose-to-brain treatment for brain cancer
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is an aggressive brain cancer with no curative treatment and poor prognosis. One of the biggest challenges with treating GBM is the inability of treatment to cross the blood-brain barrier resulting in poor drug distribution in the brain. Fortunately, scientists have recently developed a novel nose-to-brain delivery system that uses nanoparticles loaded with a chemotherapy drug called paclitaxel. Initial treatment investigations in vivo are showing significant promise in reducing and controlling the tumour burden. While exciting, before …
- Study level
- Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Mathematical Sciences
Characterising a DNA repair protein as an anti-cancer therapeutic target and diagnostic marker in brain cancer
Cancer is the single biggest clinical problem facing the world and will account for half of all global deaths by 2030. Even though there have been significant advances in immunotherapy, we are still unable to cure most cancers. New therapeutic targets, individualised to patient needs, must be identified and validated in order to improve cancer outcomes.Brain cancer causes more deaths in people under the age of 40 than any other cancer and more deaths in children than any other disease. …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Health
- School
- School of Biomedical Sciences
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Genomics and Personalised Health
Using a natural β-carboline dimer compound to target metabolic vulnerabilities linked to glycolysis in prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is an androgen dependent cancer and treatments are aimed at preventing activation of the androgen receptor. Part of the development of resistance to therapies involves prostate cancers reprogramming their metabolism to overcome metabolic stress induced by these therapies and support growth and survival. This reprogramming involves increases in the rate of glycolysis and intermediate pathways branching from glycolysis. Previously in our laboratory, the natural compound, beta-carboline dimer, BD, was identified to have potent effects on cell viability, cell …
- Study level
- Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Health
- School
- School of Biomedical Sciences
Investigating immunosuppression downstream of activated FGFR2 in endometrial cancer
FGFR2 encodes two alternatively spliced isoforms that differ in their ligand binding domain and the combination of tissue specific expression of these isoforms and tissue specific expression of the FGF ligands is the foundation of normal paracrine signalling. Isoform switching from FGFR2b (inclusion of exon 8) to FGFR2c (inclusion of exon 9) occurs in tumorigenesis as it establishes an autocrine loop in epithelial cancer cells. Our lab has reported that FGFR2 activation by mutations or isoform switching is associated with …
- Study level
- PhD
- Faculty
- Faculty of Health
- School
- School of Biomedical Sciences
Investigating the role of Neuropilin-1 in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer metastasis and chemoresistance
Triple-negative breast cancers (TNBC) are negative for Estrogen Receptor, Progesterone Receptor and HER2 expression, are clinically aggressive and are unresponsive to the available hormonal or targeted drugs used for other breast cancer subtypes, so that TNBC patients rely mainly on chemotherapy. TNBC accounts for 15-20% of all invasive breast cancer and patients have increased risk of recurrence, mortality and early metastatic progression. Thus, there is an urgent clinical need to develop improved treatment strategies for TNBC. Neuropilin-1 (NRP1) is a …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Health
- School
- School of Biomedical Sciences
Testing a promising targeted therapeutic for triple-negative breast cancer
Triple-negative breast cancers (TNBC) are negative for Estrogen Receptor, Progesterone Receptor and HER2 expression, are clinically aggressive and cannot be treated with the available hormonal or targeted drugs used for other breast cancer subtypes. TNBC accounts for 15-20% of all invasive breast cancer and patients have increased risk of recurrence, mortality and metastases early during disease progression. There is an urgent clinical need to develop improved treatment strategies for these women since the median survival of patients with metastatic TNBC …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy
- Faculty
- Faculty of Health
- School
- School of Biomedical Sciences
Investigating differences in downstream signalling mediated by two isoforms of FGFR2 in endometrial cancer
FGFR2 encodes two alternatively spliced isoforms that differ in their ligand binding domain and the combination of tissue specific expression of these isoforms and tissue specific expression of the FGF ligands is the foundation of normal paracrine signalling. Isoform switching from FGFR2b (inclusion of exon 8) to FGFR2c (inclusion of exon 9) occurs in tumorigenesis as it establishes an autocrine loop in epithelial cancer cells.We have previously published a detailed investigation into differences between wildtype FGFR2b and mutant FGFR2b following …
- Study level
- Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Health
- School
- School of Biomedical Sciences
A novel molecular targeted therapy for anaplastic prostate cancer
In advanced PCa, where the cancer has spread into the bone and other organs, the emergence of treatment resistance remains inevitable. For decades the primary form of treatment in advanced PCa has been to target the production and actions of male sex hormones, androgens, the primary developmental and survival factor of prostate tissue. While these therapies result in tumour regression and cancer control, this is temporary and treatment resistance occurs, referred to as castrate resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). In the …
- Study level
- Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Health
- School
- School of Biomedical Sciences
Dietary counselling for nutrition-impacting symptoms during cancer treatment
Nutrition-impacting symptoms contribute to decreased quality of life and food intake, and subsequent malnutrition and decreased willingness to commence or complete cancer treatment, which all compromise survival. Evidence exists to support the role of dietary counselling for malnutrition during cancer treatment; however, less is known about the role of dietary counselling for nutrition-impacting symptoms that lead to the development of malnutrition.This systematic review project will synthesise available evidence on the effect of dietary counselling interventions on nutrition-impacting symptoms (e.g., fatigue, …
- Study level
- Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Health
- School
- School of Nursing
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Healthcare Transformation
Cancer and Palliative Care Outcomes Centre
Medication and dietary supplement use and symptom severity of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy
Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is highly prevalent and clinically problematic, occurring in up to 60–80% of people receiving chemotherapy. Despite the high prevalence and significant patient and healthcare burden of CIPN, treatment options are limited.This project will explore the association between medication and dietary supplement use and symptom severity of CIPN to identify factors that might worsen or improve CIPN symptoms.
- Study level
- Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Health
- School
- School of Nursing
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Healthcare Transformation
Cancer and Palliative Care Outcomes Centre
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