LATEST NEWS: 31 March 2026

TROG’s inaugural Secondary Data Analysis (SDA) grant has been awarded to an early-career researcher who will draw on data from a TROG trial of radiation therapy for prostate cancer to gain a better understanding of long-term patient outcomes.

Dr Therese Kang, a Radiation Oncologist at Alfred Health in Melbourne (pictured above with TROG CEO Susan Goode), was awarded the $3,000 SDA Grant, which was generously supported by the Newcastle-based commercial real estate agency Commercial Collective.

The annual grant is designed to help TROG early-career researchers kickstart new SDA research projects.

Dr Kang, who was presented with the grant at the TROG 2026 Annual Scientific Meeting Gala Dinner in March, said it would help her to undertake her first secondary data analysis research project.

Her project, selected from a strong field of applicants, will use data from the TROG 15.01 – SPARK trial to better understand the long-term cancer outcomes and side effects of stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), a widely used, highly precise treatment for localised prostate cancer, delivered in just five sessions.

In the SPARK trial, the prostate was continuously monitored during treatment delivery, and any movement was corrected in real time using an advanced imaging method. While early results are encouraging, outcomes at five years have not yet been reported.

Dr Kang plans to collect and analyse five-year follow-up information on cancer control, patient-reported quality of life and clinician-reported side effects, and to compare those with other larger international prostate SBRT trials.

“I have a special interest in prostate SBRT and I was inspired by the need to improve the accuracy and safety of prostate SBRT by directly addressing intrafraction motion, and by the unique opportunity the SPARK trial provides as the first multi‑institutional study of real‑time KIM‑guided treatment,” Dr Kang said.

“I hope to determine whether SPARK’s early benefits translate into longer term cancer control and to use its delivered‑dose data to define clearer dose–toxicity relationships that can guide future SBRT practice.”

TROG CEO Susan Goode said the annual SDA grant would help researchers to unlock fresh discoveries from TROG’s wealth of existing trial data, answering important questions that can shape the future of cancer care.

“By analysing existing data, research like Therese’s project can be delivered faster and more cost-effectively than launching a brand-new clinical trial — that means evidence can be accelerated into practice, bringing better treatments to patients sooner,” she said.

• Read more about TROG’s Secondary Data Analysis opportunities.