AOMA Summit
Australasia's premier ocular melanoma cross-disciplinary meeting
Building on the previously highly successful Australasian Ocular Melanoma Alliance (AOMA) summits, the 4th AOMA Summit will bring together healthcare professionals, researchers and consumers in ocular melanoma to share the latest research and facilitate national and international collaborations for this rare, debilitating and often devastating cancer.
This free virtual event will include a scientific program and presentations focused on consumer and advocate involvement.
The diverse program will cover laboratory and translational research, clinical trials and registries, diagnosis and clinical management, updates on current and future treatment options, as well as consumer and clinician discussion panels.
Event Details
Time: 9 am – 5 pm (AEST)
Date: Saturday, 24 June 2023
Venue: Online only
Registration is free
Registrations open soon.
More speakers will be added to the program as they are confirmed.
World-leading ocular melanoma experts
International speakers
Roger Olofsson Bagge is a Professor in cancer surgery at University of Gothenburg and a senior consultant surgeon at Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden. He has a profound interest in research concerning metastatic uveal melanoma, and has pioneered clinical research in locoregional treatments with isolated hepatic perfusions, lately also combining this with novel immunotherapy. In his lab, he is also exploring the role of extracellular vesicles and their roles in pre-metastatic niche formations in the liver.
Talk: Locoregional therapies for metastatic uveal melanoma
Marlana Orloff MD is an Associate Professor and Medical Oncologist at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. Her focus is on rare melanoma subtypes including mucosal, conjunctival, and uveal melanoma. Her research is centred on investigating the epidemiology of rare melanoma subtypes and the discovery of novel therapies. She works closely with a multidisciplinary team involving ophthalmology, interventional radiology, radiation oncology, and medical oncology that treats patients with uveal melanoma from all over the country.
Talk: Uveal melanoma: Where we are and where we are going
Sara Selig MD MPH, is the Co-Founder and Director of the Melanoma Research Foundation’s CURE OM (Community United for Research and Education in Ocular Melanoma). Dr Selig became involved with the ocular melanoma community when her husband, Dr Gregg Stracks, was diagnosed with the disease in 2006, aged 34. They became fierce advocates for Gregg’s care and the entire ocular melanoma community. Dr Selig continues to be a passionate ocular melanoma advocate and works to accelerate research, promote collaboration, and support patients and caregivers through her leadership of CURE OM. Dr Selig is also an Associate Physician, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, and is an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Talk: Uniting the OM community: Keeping our eyes on a cure
Australian speakers
Professor Helen Rizos is a cancer cell biologist and her work combines genetic analyses of melanoma tumours with functional cell biology in order to understand the role and regulation cellular pathways that influence the development and therapeutic response and resistance in melanoma. Her research group is also interested in the clinical utility of liquid biopsies and is focused on the prognostic and predictive value of circulating tumour DNA in melanoma. She joined the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences at Macquarie University in 2014 and was Head of the Department of Biomedical Sciences from 2015-2020.
Talk: Determinants of PKC inhibitor response in uveal melanoma
A/Prof Fanfan Zhou is the Director of Master of Pharmacy and the Head of Molecular drug development unit in Sydney Pharmacy School, the University of Sydney. Her group is working on drug discovery and development for cancers and retinal diseases. In particular, her research contributes to the exploration of novel therapeutic targets and development of new therapeutics for human uveal melanoma. Her projects are funded by NHMRC and Australian Vision Research.
Talk: Drug discovery and develpment in human uveal melanoma
A/Prof Peter Gorayski, radiation oncologist
Dr Aaron Beasley, Early Career Researcher at the Centre for Precision Health, Edith Cowan University
AOMA Summit organising committee
- Convenor: A/Prof Rachel Roberts-Thompson, Medical Oncologist at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Adelaide
- Prof Anthony Joshua, Medical Oncologist at St Vincent’s Private Hospital Sydney, Clinical Science Pillar Director and Lab Head – Oncology Translational Research Laboratory, at Garvan Institute of Medical Research
- A/Prof Elin Gray, Associate Professor of Cancer Research and Deputy Director at Edith Cowan University.
- Gabrielle Byars, CEO, Melanoma and Skin Cancer Trials
- Merrin Morrison, Marketing and Communications Manager, Melanoma and Skin Cancer Trials
- Dr Sam Hogarth, Research Development Officer / Clinical Research Associate, Melanoma and Skin Cancer Trials
Australasian Ocular Melanoma Alliance (AOMA)
The Australasian Ocular Melanoma Alliance (AOMA) is the peak national body representing medical, para-medical, nursing and consumer representatives who aim to improve the care and treatment of ocular melanoma patients in Australia and around the world.
AOMA members include Ophthalmologists, Surgeons, Medical and Radiation Oncologists, Pathologists, Allied Health, Scientists, Researchers and Consumer Representatives from across Australia and New Zealand. The focus of this extensive collaboration is treatment paradigms for ocular melanoma, and current and future research.
AOMA was founded in 2017 by Melanoma and Skin Cancer Trials (MASC Trials) and is a MASC Trials priority research special interest group.
Visit the AOMA website for more information.
Sponsors
Silver Sponsors
Sponsorship opportunities available
AOMA and MASC Trials offer a range of benefits to sponsors of the 2023 Virtual AOMA Summit. If your company is interested in sponsoring this event, please email hello@masc.org.au for further details. Customised sponsorship packages are available.
Resources
2022 AOMA Summit resources
Visit the 2022 AOMA Summit webpage for session video recordings.
Uveal Melanoma Registry
Gathering data to improve clinical practice for uveal melanoma.
Learn more.
Patient information brochures
By AOMA and Melanoma Institute Australia
AOMA website
Visit the AOMA website
Contact
AOMA news
Email: hello@masc.org.au
Phone: +61 3 9903 9022