The Peter Nelson Leukaemia Research Fellowship Fund was established by Marjorie Jackson-Nelson in memory of her husband, Australian Olympic cyclist Peter Nelson, who passed away from leukaemia at age 45.

The Fund helps support South Australian cancer researchers to study leukaemia, with the ultimate goal of finding a cure for this type of cancer.
For close to half a century, the Peter Nelson Leukaemia Research Fellowship Fund has supported 11 talented researchers seeking to cure this deadly disease.

For University of Adelaide researcher Dr Claire Homan, the current Fellowship recipient, this funding has helped her get closer to her goal of understanding the link between genetics and leukaemia, in particular acute myeloid leukaemia (AML), the same type of leukaemia that Peter had.

Since being awarded the Fellowship, Dr Homan and her team have used advanced gene-editing technology to begin examining how specific genetic changes can lead to the development of leukaemia.

Ultimately, Dr Homan aims to use her improved understanding of the genetics behind leukaemia to develop targeted therapies that can better treat the disease and potentially prevent it from developing in the first place.

For David, who has spent more than a year away from home to undergo treatment for AML, leukaemia research has made all the difference.

He was diagnosed completely by chance after getting a routine blood test for an unrelated matter. His doctor said he had an elevated white blood cell count and told him to present to the emergency department in Broken Hill, where he was diagnosed with cancer.

David was rushed to Adelaide for treatment, where he faced two rounds of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. The transplant was gruelling and essentially meant he had to let his immune system rebuild itself from scratch, but it was worth it as David is currently cancer-free.

In March, David received the exciting news that he was well enough to return home after some 14 months away.

Despite missing home for so long, being far away from his nine-year-old son Lawson and facing all the challenges that cancer brings, David is grateful to the researchers and doctors who made his treatment possible.

"Every step of learning, every step of being able to fund researchers, it's beneficial to everyone."

By supporting the Peter Nelson Leukaemia Research Fellowship Fund, you hold the key to unlocking better ways to prevent, detect, treat and live beyond leukaemia.

 Will you help bring us closer to a future free from leukaemia?