About
Professor Bryan Day is the Group Leader of the Sid Faithfull Brain Cancer Laboratory at QIMR Berghofer MRI and an internationally recognised expert in brain cancer.
Professor Day is a Co-Director of the Children's Brain Cancer Centre in Brisbane, Co-Director of the Australian Brain Cancer Research Alliance (ABCARA), and Chair of the Centre for Neuro-Oncology Excellence (CNE).
He obtained his PhD in Medical Sciences from the University of Queensland in 2008 and completed his post-doctoral training in brain cancer research at the QIMR Berghofer from 2009-2014.
In 2015, he founded the Sid Faithfull Brain Cancer Laboratory, now recognised as one of Australia's leading neuro-oncology-focused laboratories. With 87 publications directly related to brain cancer or Eph receptor biology, Professor Day has recieved over 3,700 citations and an H-index of 33.
One of Professor Day’s major research contributions include the characterisation of the EphA3 receptor as a therapeutic target in GBM (Day et al 2013, Cancer Cell, Cit=63), leading to clinical trials for a novel EphA3 targeting therapeutic antibody in patients with recurrent brain cancer.
Another major achievement has been the development of a brain tumour and cell culture bank at QIMR Berghofer MRI, which has collected >500 tumour specimens to-date. From this resource, more than 60 primary cell lines have been generated which are the basis of his group’s research and collaborative global researchers. Twelve of these models have been characterised in great detail and made publicly available as a resource termed ‘QCell’. These models have been used in numerous studies globally and have been published in over 60 articles to-date.
As a past ASMR Director and a member of advisory committees for both The Cooperative Trials Group for Neuro-Oncology (COGNO) and Brain Cancer Biobanking Australia (BCBA), Professor Day holds a key position in translating his research findings into clinical trials. His leadership in securing significant grants and leading national programs like the MRFF Brain Cancer Infrastructure Grant ($6 million) underscores his commitment to driving impactful advancements in neuro-oncology.
Research Skills
- Advanced microscopy imaging
- Molecular cloning
- Primary cell culture
- Xenograft model development
- Tumour banking
- 3D culture/Organoids
- Pharmacokinetic animal studies
- In vitro and biochemistry assays (Western Blot)
- Data mining
- MTA Coordination – QCell
- Tumour Biobank Administration
- Management of ethical consents
- Spatial/RNA Sequencing
Area of Interest
Professor Day and his team at the Sid Faithfull Brain Cancer Laboratory study the most common and aggressive form of adult brain cancer, Glioblastoma (GBM) and paediatric brain cancers, Medulloblastoma and Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG). The focus of this research is to better understand the molecular mechanisms which are responsible for the initiation and recurrence of brain cancers. From this work, Professor Day and his team aim to develop and test new and effective therapies to treat these aggressive diseases.