Wellington, June 10 NZPA - Wellington-based Malaghan Institute of Medical Research is to lead a major five-year $5 million research effort in the emerging and highly competitive field of therapeutic cancer vaccines.

The project is one of the major winners in $81.88m funding announced today by the Health Research Council of New Zealand (HRC) for programmes of between three and five years duration.

The HRC is the principal government agency responsible for funding health research in New Zealand.

Malaghan's Ian Hermans and his colleagues will lead to a Phase I randomised trial that will test vaccines in patients with end-stage melanoma. The researchers aim to translate their experimental work to commercial development and "positive health outcomes".

"The Malaghan Institute of Medical Research has an international reputation, and this funding will assist them in their world-leading work, in a disease that has particular importance in New Zealand," said HRC chief executive Robin Olds.

Dr Olds said world-class research teams had been given up to $5m each to support their work, for research programmes which were wide-ranging, with final outcomes which would benefit all New Zealanders.

The funded programmes range from a study which looks at improving nutrition in relation to obesity and mortality, to research which will examine the burden of stroke in New Zealand, to research into alzheimer's disease and other dementias, which afflict more than 40,000 New Zealanders.

"The allocation of more than $81 million of new funding for health research, after a rigorous assessment process, emphasises the outstanding nature of health research being carried out in New Zealand," Dr Olds said.

"The funding will make a major contribution to being able to deliver health care better, sooner, and has the potential to deliver economic gains to the country."

Funding will be given to research by Professor Valery Feigin, from AUT University, which will examine the current and future burden of stroke in New Zealand in collaboration with researchers from the University of Auckland, Waikato University, Waikato Hospital and the Ministry of Health.

Stroke is the second most common cause of death worldwide, and has a significant physical, psychological and financial impact on patients and their families.

Almost $5m over five years will be spent by Professor Wickliffe Abraham, from the University of Otago, Dunedin, as he investigates alzheimer's disease and other dementias.

Dementia afflicts more than 40,000 New Zealanders and the ageing of the population will significantly increase the number of affected.

Professor Tony Blakely, from the University of Otago, Wellington, will study health spending over the next five years in order to demonstrate the best way to spend limited health resources.

Among the questions he will examine are: on what should additional health dollars be spent, is prevention or treatment more cost-effective, and will new interventions improve or worsen inequalities?

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