Dr Rayan Saleh Moussa, CST Postdoctoral Research Fellow, and Dr Mariana Sousa, Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Research Fellow, have each been awarded a $15,000 Faculty of Health Seeding Grant.
Rayan has received a Category 1 Seeding Grant, which will support her in undertaking research for her project, Bright light therapy for delirium prevention in hospitalised adults with advanced cancer: A Phase II randomised controlled pilot feasibility trial.
A person with delirium may be confused and may not be aware of their surroundings. They may be scared, irritable, angry or depressed and may hallucinate. Delirium affects multiple patient groups, including people with cancer and those receiving palliative care.
This funding will help to identify if this treatment can help improve the quality of life of people with advanced cancer who have a higher risk of experiencing delirium in hospital, a distressing symptom for the person and for their families.
Mariana has received a Health Data Seed Funding Grant, which will support her project, Pain and nutrition symptoms in people with pancreatic cancer in Australian palliative care services: leveraging real-world data to implement symptom-integrated care.
Over 4,000 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer each year. In 2021, it was estimated to be the eight most common cancer in Australia. Pain, appetite loss and weight loss are some of the symptoms experience by people with pancreatic cancer.
This study will help us to understand and assess how severe and distressing pain and nutrition symptoms are for people living with pancreatic cancer in Australian palliative care services with a view to informing best clinical practice for the management of these symptoms.
Congratulations to Rayan and Mariana. We look forward to learning more about these important projects.
Sources
National Cancer Institute, Dictionary of Cancer Terms, accessed April 2023.
Cancer Council, Understanding Pancreatic Cancer fact sheet , accessed April 2023.