This Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, ONJCRI is proud to announce that Dr Teresa Sadras’s Leukaemia Biology and Functional Genomics Laboratory has been named the inaugural recipient of the Audrey Lilian McLaren Award, a new philanthropic award established to support research into the causes its namesake cared about most.
The Award was created by Sally, Skye, and James Patterson in memory of their late aunt, Audrey Lilian McLaren, through a foundation established in her name. Their generosity now directly powers research with the potential to change outcomes for children facing leukaemia, in a fitting tribute to someone who was committed to helping others.
Audrey Lilian McLaren lived a long and full life as an artist and art teacher. She served with the Red Cross during the war, an experience that shaped a lifelong passion for supporting health and medical research.
“Audrey always gave to charity throughout her life,” her niece Sally shared. “Given that she overcame cancer herself, that really paved the way for her particular interest in women’s cancer research and expression of that in children as well.“
For the Patterson family, choosing where to direct their philanthropy was a considered process, guided by a simple question. “We keep in the forefront of our minds: ‘What would Audrey have done?‘” said Audrey’s grand-niece, Skye.
That question led them to Dr Sadras and her team. “We really connected with Teresa and what she’s doing, and so that’s why we decided to partner and support her work,” Skye said. “It’s just so important to support these researchers, because if we don’t have the researchers doing the work that they do, then how do we become advanced in helping the kids and the women live longer, healthier lives?“
Dr Sadras’ team focuses on B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (B-ALL), the most common cancer diagnosed in children. Using cutting-edge tools including CRISPR gene editing, the lab is working to understand exactly how leukaemia cells evade treatment. This insight is critical to designing better, more precise therapies for young patients and improving long-term survival.
A particular focus for the team is relapse: understanding why some children’s leukaemia returns or fails to respond to treatment in the first place, and using those insights to develop therapies that are both more effective and less toxic for young patients.
“I’m incredibly honoured to be the inaugural recipient of the Audrey Lilian McLaren Award,” Dr Sadras said. “This support means so much to me personally and professionally, and provides an incredible opportunity to continue building our research program focused on improving outcomes for children with leukaemia.
“The Award will give our lab the capacity to drive promising projects and new ideas forward. In particular, it will allow us to better understand why some children’s leukaemias relapse or fail to respond to treatment, and to use those insights to develop more effective and less toxic therapies.
“I’m extremely grateful for this investment in our research and for the opportunity it gives us to be ambitious about the questions we ask and the impact we hope to make.”
Thank you to the Patterson family for investing in the next generation of cancer research. Audrey’s legacy will continue to shape the questions this team asks, and the discoveries they drive forward, for years to come.
If you feel inspired to honour a loved one through cancer research, please contact philanthropy@onjcri.org.au.