A/Prof Jyotsna Batra has been named Cure Cancer Australia's Researcher of the Year
QUT, TRI based researcher A/Prof Jyotsna Batra has been named Cure Cancer Australia's Researcher of the Year 2018 for her work in identifying genetic variations that predispose men to prostate cancer.
Jyotsna is working to show that in gene sequences, when used in conjunction with the traditional Prostate-Specific Antigen blood test, can be effective biomarkers to identify men predisposed to developing prostate cancer.
A/Prof Batra said "I am extremely grateful to Cure Cancer Australia for recognising my research potential through the Researcher of the Year Award. I have been fortunate enough to receive three Grants CCA, which helped establish my own lab and undertake some high risk innovative research. This recognition will further help escalate my career in prostate cancer research area and transition from an ECR to MCR phase. The monetary contribution of this Award will enable me to attend am international Conference to disseminate my research findings to broader audience."
Chosen out of ten nominees, the award was given at a ceremony in Sydney in late May and recognises the outstanding achievements of early-career researchers.
“By analysing the DNA of around 50,000 individuals, half of which belongs to prostate cancer patients, we’ve identified 100 genetic variations associated with prostate cancer risk”, she says. “They can collectively explain about 30% of the inherited component of the disease.”
