Symposium 7: Transforming Lung Cancer: from Discovery to Delivery
Tracks
Track 3
| Thursday, December 11, 2025 |
| 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM |
Details
Lung cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer, and the leading cause of cancer-related death. Despite advances in cancer treatments over the past 5 years, survival rates for lung cancer remain low. Many treatments cause side effects, and while initially effective, most current lung cancer therapies often lead to the development of resistance over time.
This symposium, combines experts in the areas of pre-clinical and clinical oncology, providing expertise and resources across cancer therapeutics, cancer-related biobanks, cutting edge technologies, and novel approaches and models that can innovate how we treat cancer. Importantly, cancer research has been largely underrepresented at ASCEPT, and this symposium will be an important step to increasing engagement of the many researchers in this field.
This symposium will delve into advances and novel therapeutic approaches and drug targets for cancer (Smith), novel models of environmental-induced lung cancer (Donovan), sequencing approaches (Wang) and updates on new clinical/biobank samples (Shivakumar; Clinical Pharmacologist & Respiratory Clinician) available to researchers. This collaborative effort promises to advance the frontiers of knowledge and foster breakthroughs in cancer, resonating with the overarching goals of the joint ASCEPT Hypertension Australia meeting of innovation, drug discovery and development.
Speaker
A/Prof Nicola Smith
Head of Department of Pharmacology
UNSW Sydney
Development of a biologically-selective treatment for lung adenocarcinoma
Biography
Associate Professor Nicola J Smith is an expert in molecular pharmacology with a track record in exploring GPCR structure-function relationships in the context of cardiovascular disease and metabolic disorders, and more recently lung cancer. She is the Head of the Department of Pharmacology at UNSW Sydney, Australia, where her team works on a class of G protein-coupled receptors called ‘orphan GPCRs’. Recently, her career focus has been interrogating receptor deorphanisation claims and calling for more stringent standards of evidence. Smith is the current President-elect of the Australasian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists and Toxicologists (ASCEPT).
Dr Chantal Donovan
Group Leader and Senior Lecturer
University Of Technology Sydney
A novel model of air pollution-induced lung cancer
Biography
Dr Chantal Donovan is a respiratory pharmacologist and Head of the ImmunoPharmacology Research Group (IPRG) at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and Woolcock Institute of Medical Research.
She completed her PhD in Pharmacology at The University of Melbourne in 2015 and postdoctoral training at Monash University and the University of Newcastle (Immunology & Microbiology). She was awarded an NHMRC Early Career Fellowship (2017-2020) and NHMRC New Investigator grant (2018-2021) and was recruited to UTS as a faculty member in 2019.
Her research specialises in drug discovery and pharmacological testing of novel treatments for lung diseases, using novel pre-clinical models of lung cancer, asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, combined with cutting-edge techniques to measure lung physiology, pharmacology and immunological mechanisms (e.g. precision cut lung slices, flow cytometry).
She is currently on the Board of Directors of Australasian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists and Toxicologists (ASCEPT) and convenes the ASCEPT Respiratory and Inflammation Special Interest Group.
Dr Senthuran Shivakumar
Clinical Pharmacologist and Respiratory and Sleep Physician
University of Melbourne / Austin Health
TRACKER Biobank: empowering lung cancer breakthroughs
Biography
Dr. Senthuran Shivakumar is a Respiratory Physician and Clinical Pharmacologist based at Austin Health and the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute in Melbourne, Victoria. He is currently pursuing a PhD focused on identifying biomarkers for immunotherapy-related pneumonitis. Dr. Shivakumar’s research investigates the intricate immunobiology underlying this form of drug-induced ILD, which is associated with significant morbidity and mortality in cancer patients. By examining the cellular, molecular, and microbial factors driving immunotherapy-related pneumonitis, his work aims to find predictive and diagnostic biomarkers as well as potential therapeutic targets that could improve management. His overall goal is to improve the survivorship of cancer patients receiving immunotherapy through improved safety and precision medicine.
Dr Baoming Wang
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
University of Technology Sydney
Sequencing approaches for improving diagnosis – insights from industry
Biography
Dr. Baoming Wang is a research fellow at the University of Technology Sydney and the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research, specialising in translational oncology and molecular diagnostics. After earning his PhD in Life Sciences from UTS in early 2021, he returned to China and spent three years in the biotechnology industry. He worked at Genetron Health Co., Ltd., a NASDAQ-listed precision oncology company, where he led the development of CE-certified RNA NGS panels (FusionCapture™ and FusionScan™) for detecting clinically actionable gene fusions. These panels have been applied in over 25,000 cancer patients and adopted by biopharma partners for clinical trial stratification and companion diagnostics. During his time in industry, he collaborated closely with clinicians from multiple hospitals and co-authored seven peer-reviewed clinical publications—six of which as co–first author. In late 2024, he returned to academia, integrating his industry experience into research on extracellular vesicles, environmental exposures, and lung cancer.
Chair
Richard Kim
Group Leader, ImmunoPharmacology Research Group
University Of Technology Sydney
Mariah Stavrou
PhD Candidate
UNSW Sydney
