Professor Ian Frazer

Director, Diamantina Institute for Cancer, Immunology and Metabollic Medicine (DI)

PM Science Prize winner, Ian Frazer, was trained as a renal physician and clinical immunologist in Edinburgh, Scotland before emigrating in 1980 to Melbourne, Australia to pursue studies in viral immunology and autoimmunity at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research with Professor Ian Mackay.

In 1985 he moved north to Brisbane to take up a teaching post with the University of Queensland, and he now holds a personal chair as head of the Centre for Immunology and Cancer Research, a research institute of the University at the Princess Alexandra Hospital.

His current research interests include immunoregulation, and immunotherapeutic vaccines for Papillomavirus associated cancers. Prof Frazer holds research funding from several Australian and US funding bodies. He is a director of a biotechnology start up company, Coridon, with an interest in optimising and targeting polynucleotide vaccine protein expression.

He won the 2005 CSIRO Eureka Prize for Leadership in Science and was named Australian of the Year in 2006 for his development of the human papillomavirus (HPV) cervical cancer vaccines.

Prof Frazer has recently been appointed Chair for 2009 of the Australian Cancer Research Foundation's prestigious Medical Research Advisory Committee. He also chairs the medical and scientific advisory committee of the Queensland Cancer Fund, and advises the WHO and the Bill and Melissa Gates Foundation on papillomavirus vaccines.

Dr Frazer teaches immunology to undergraduate and graduate students of the University. He was recently made a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science.  In March 2007 he was awarded the prestigious Howard Florey Medal for Medical Research and earlier this year was announced as recipient of the Balzan Prize, a major international award recognising his "outstanding scientific achievement and lasting contribution to preventive medicine".

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Go here for Professor Frazer's latest proejct at the Diamantina Institute.