In Australia the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma, the most common form of liver cancer, has consistently risen four to five per cent every year since 1982.

Liver cancer is often diagnosed at a late stage, when treatment options are limited. The current ‘one-size-fits-all’ treatments prolong a patient’s lifespan by only two to three months and are associated with high toxicities. A more detailed understanding of what drives liver cancer at a molecular level is urgently required to personalise treatment and improve prognosis.

The collaborative aims to build a globally unique biorepository with extensive clinical and genomics data to provide a comprehensive dataset from diagnosis to late-stage disease.

Collaborators include hepatologists, radiologists, pathologists, liver cancer researchers, genomic scientists, computational biologists, immunologists, data and software experts, and consumer representatives.

A comprehensive program of genomic analysis, discovery science, organoid development (lab-grown mini livers) and pre-clinical drug testing is underpinned by the establishment of a world-class liver cancer biobank.

The data will inform a state-of-the-art liver cancer treatment database and a collaborative digital research workspace to help address the growing global challenge of defeating liver cancer.

This multidisciplinary collaboration will:

The success of the Liver Cancer Collaborative relies on a strong collaborative network of hospitals, research partners and philanthropy.