- Dr Aeson Chang from Monash University has been awarded 2025 Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Program grant
- Dr Chang becomes one of only three researchers globally to receive the 2025 grant in the Solid Tumours category
- Two-year funding will support research exploring the potential role of a common anti-nausea medication in improving breast cancer outcomes, following publication of large-scale observational study
Melbourne, Australia – 18 July 2025 – Gilead Sciences Australia today announced that Dr Aeson Chang from the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MIPS) has been awarded a 2025 Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Program grant of US$180,000 over two years. Dr Chang is one of just three recipients globally to receive this grant in the Solid Tumours category 2025, highlighting both the calibre of Australian scientists on the global stage and the importance of continued investment in early-stage research locally.
The Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Program grant will support Dr Chang to further explore observational data that identified a potential survival benefit of a commonly prescribed anti-nausea medication when used with chemotherapy in women with early-stage breast cancer. Co-led by Monash University and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and published this week in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, the study analysed data from 13,811 women diagnosed with breast cancer between 2008 and 2020. Findings revealed a 17% reduction in breast cancer-specific mortality and an 11% decrease in recurrence risk among patients who received a common anti-nausea medication during chemotherapy.[1] The association was particularly pronounced in women with triple-negative breast cancer, where the anti-nausea medication’s use was associated with a 39% reduced risk of death and a 34% reduced risk of recurrence at 10 years.1*
“It is an incredible honour to receive the 2025 Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Program grant and to be able to continue to lead this exciting new pharmacological research project in Australia. The support from Gilead is timely and instrumental in helping us to delve deeper and explore the biological mechanisms behind the interplay between chemotherapy and anti-nausea medication, and their influence on survival outcomes in early breast cancer, which we saw in our initial findings. We particularly want to know if this could influence the future treatment of triple-negative breast cancer – an aggressive malignancy with limited therapeutic options,” said Dr Chang.
The Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Program provides two years of financial support to early-career researchers to help transform scientific understanding, address knowledge gaps and drive medical breakthroughs across oncology, virology and liver disease. Since 2008, the program has awarded more than $36 million USD for meaningful research conducted by more than 280 scholars in over 160 countries, including Australia.
“At Gilead, we are proud to support ground-breaking research that has the potential to change the future of healthcare,” said Dr Paul Slade, Senior Country Medical Director, Gilead Sciences Australia. “Dr Chang’s work is a fantastic example of the innovative research we seek to support through the Research Scholars Program. We are so thrilled and proud to see an Australian researcher being recognised as one of only three recipients globally this year. This achievement highlights the outstanding contributions of Australian researchers on the world stage, and I look forward to seeing the insights generated through this project and their potential implications for breast cancer treatment paradigms.”
The full study is available at https://doi.org/10.1093/jnci/djaf178.
For more information on the Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Program, visit https://researchscholars.gilead.com/.
* Note not all women have been followed up for 10 years. E.g. women diagnosed in 2020. The median follow up is 5.2 years.
ENDS -
For all information enquiries, please contact Gilead on 1800 806 112 (within Australia) or email [email protected].
About the Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Programs
The Gilead Sciences Research Scholars Program provides two years of financial support to early-career researchers working to advance scientific understanding in areas of unmet medical need. Each award offers up to USD $180,000, disbursed in two annual instalments to the scholar’s institution. Continuation of funding into the second year is contingent upon submission and approval of a progress report by the program’s Scientific Review Committee Chair.
Since its launch in 2008, the Research Scholars Program has invested more than USD $36 million to support over 280 scholars worldwide. The program reflects Gilead’s commitment to fostering a diverse and inclusive scientific community, with award selections made without discrimination based on race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation, disability, genetic characteristics, or gender identity and expression.
Applications are invited annually across therapeutic areas, including hematologic malignancies, solid tumours, and liver disease. For more information, visit https://researchscholars.gilead.com/.
About Gilead Sciences
Gilead Sciences, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that has pursued and achieved breakthroughs in medicine for more than three decades, with the goal of creating a healthier world for all people. The company is committed to advancing innovative medicines to prevent and treat life-threatening diseases, including HIV, viral hepatitis, COVID-19 and cancer. Gilead operates in more than 35 countries worldwide, with headquarters in Foster City, California. Based in Melbourne, Gilead Sciences Australia and New Zealand employs over 100 people.
Gilead, the Gilead logo and the Creating Possible tagline are registered trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc.Gilead Sciences Pty Ltd. Level 28, 385 Bourke Street, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. ABN 71 072 611 708. AU-COR-0175. Date of preparation: July 2025.
[1] Botteri E, Hjorth S, Conforti F, et al. Aprepitant use during chemotherapy and association with survival in women with early breast cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2025;117(7):djaf178.
