Cancer Co-operative Groups

Clinical trials have helped improve the survival of cancer patients. They contribute to a reduction in premature death and disability, improvement in the evidence behind cancer care, and a health system that is both cost-effective and best practice. Australia has 13 national cancer cooperative groups, with a record of world-class research. COSA and the Cancer Council have welcomed Commonwealth support for these groups through Cancer Australia over recent years and will continue to advocate for increased and ongoing government funding for independent cancer clinical trials, as we prepare for a major future increase in cancer incidence as our population ages.

• The Australasian Sarcoma Study Group (ASSG) provides the infrastructure for collaboration between multi-disciplinary teams (MDT), which comprise specialist health professionals working together to discuss your case and how best to manage your treatment and care (for example, specialist cancer doctors and nurses and supportive care clinicians such as social workers, psychologists and physiotherapists).

• The Australasian Gastro Intestinal Trials Group (AGITG) mission is to improve outcomes for patients affected by GI cancer. Involving the community at all levels of the institute to raise awareness and funds for the prevention and treatment of GI cancer in Australia and New Zealand.

• The Australasian Leukaemia & Lymphoma Group (ALLG) is an independent non-profit organisation established by clinicians who care for patients with leukaemia, lymphoma and related blood diseases. It aims to improve the treatment of these patients and to foster collaboration with other relevant groups both national and international. It also aims to fund appropriate research and specific programs to reduce the burdon of such diseases for present and future generations, and to increase the understanding of such diseases by appropriate research including clinical trials.

• The Australasian Lung Trials Group (ALTG) is Australia and New Zealand's lung and thoracic cancer clinical research group. The ALTG is a multi-disciplinary organisation dedicated to reducing the incidence, morbidity and mortality of lung and thoracic cancer and improving the quality of life of lung and thoracic cancer patients in Australia and New Zealand through the coordination and facilitation of high quality clinical research.   

• The Australian New Zealand Breast Cancer Trials Group (ANZBCTG) is dedicated to the control of breast cancer through quality research.  

• The Australian and New Zealand Children's Haematology and Oncology Group (ANZ CHOG) aim is to encourage and support education and the advanement of knowledge in all aspects of treatment and childhood cancers. Emphasis is on advances in molecular biology, and the opportunities afforded by those advances for the improvement in diagnosis, treatment and prediction of outcomes of therapy.  

• Australia New Zealand Gynaecology Oncology Group (ANZGOG) was established to foster and support collaborative research throughout Australia and New Zealand and improve outcomes of women with gynaecological malignancies through randomised clinical trials.   

• The Australia New Zealand Melanoma Trials Group (ANZ MTG) was established in 1999. Its first project was to design and support randomised phase III trial in melanoma comparing adjuvant radiotherapy to observation in patients with resected nodal disease. Since then the ANZ MTG has successfully met the target patient recruitment for this trial and is in the process of developing 4 new clinical trial protocols. The ANZ MTG has recognised the need to centrally promote and support melanoma trials for investigators and consumers. 

• The Australian and  New Zealand Urogenital and Prostate Cancer Trials Group (ANZUP) Limited is a public company limited by  guarantee and incorporates APUG (Australian Prostate & Urogenital cancers Group) and ANZGCTG (Australian & New Zealand Germ Cells Trial Group). The group is multidisciplinary in composition and is dedicated to best practice and innovation in urogenital and prostate cancer clinical trials. 

• Co-operative Trial Group for Neuro-Oncology (COGNO) is a newly formed national neuro-oncology trial based group based at the NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, located at the University of Sydney.  COGNO's mission is: "The achievement of better health outcomes for patients and those affected by brain tumours through clinical trials research."    

• Primary Care Collaborative Cancer Clinical Trials Group (PC4TG)

• The Psycho-oncology Cooperative Research Group (PoCoG) was established in 2005, in response to a recognised need to develop the capacity and co-ordinated collaboration to conduct large-scale, multi-centre psycho-oncology and supportive care research.   

• The TransTasman Radiation Oncology Group (TROG) is Australia and New Zealand's specialist clinical research group for radiotherapy. TROG is a cooperative multidisciplinary organisation dedicated to the control of a wide range of cancers through quality multicentre research.