In a world-first discovery, doctors can now check hundreds of markers in a single biopsy to show which treatments, like immunotherapy, chemotherapy or radiotherapy, will work best for patients with head and neck cancer.
The study from our Queensland Spatial Biology Centre (QSBC), published in Nature Precision Oncology, is likely the largest discovery protein study of its kind for translational cancer research.
Led by Associate Professor Arutha Kulasinghe, the research is the first to profile hundreds of proteins and thousands of gene messages from a single tissue slide, examining samples from 84 patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, the 7th most common cancer globally with nearly 890,000 new cases worldwide each year.
Associate Professor Arutha Kulasinghe with Dr Meg Donovan from the QSBC team
By studying the area around the tumour, the team found clues that predict if treatments will succeed or if the cancer might resist them.
“This is an important technological development for cancer research,” said Associate Professor Arutha Kulasinghe, Scientific Director of QSBC.
We’ve shown for the first time that we can measure hundreds of clues from a single hospital biopsy to unlock the secrets of head and neck cancer. This lets doctors personalise treatments to give patients the best chance of beating cancer
A/Prof Arutha Kulasinghe
Multiplex immunofluorescent image of two head and neck cancer patient biopsies.
Associate Professor Kulasinghe also said the study found that specific immune cells near the tumour were linked to patients living longer without the cancer returning. Additionally, he said the research identified new targets for future drugs to help patients whose cancers do not respond to current treatments.
This global collaboration is with Bruker Spatial Biology, Abcam, The University of Queensland and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute.
We hope this will meaningfully change the lives of those with cancer and give them genuinely better treatment options and outcomes
A/Prof Arutha Kulasinghe
“By understanding each patient’s cancer in such detail, doctors will be able to offer treatments that work best for them. We’re thrilled to continue this work with our global partners.”
Learn more about the work of the Queensland Spatial Biology Centre and read the publication.
Tan, C.W., Berrell, N., Donovan, M.L. et al. The development of a high-plex spatial proteomic methodology for the characterisation of the head and neck tumour microenvironment. npj Precis. Onc. 9, 191 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41698-025-00963-0