Posted 2 February 2026
SVI is welcoming DNA damage and repair researcher Dr Rebecca Smith, thanks to funding from the Cancer Council Victoria’s Cancer Research Fellowship Victoria Program, announced today.
Originally from New Zealand, Rebecca has trained in leading research labs across Europe, including in Germany, France and the UK. Most recently, she has worked in the laboratory of leading ADP-ribosylation and DNA damage expert, Professor Ivan Ahel, at the University of Oxford.
The funding will allow Rebecca to launch her independent research program at SVI in mid 2026, where she will focus on understanding why some cancers stop responding to treatment.
Rebecca’s research centres on a class of cancer drugs known as PARP inhibitors. These drugs are widely used to treat breast, ovarian, prostate and pancreatic cancers caused by BRCA gene mutations. PARP inhibitors work by blocking a cell’s ability to repair damaged DNA, causing cancer cells to die while leaving healthy cells largely unharmed.
Rebecca is researching why cancers can adapt and become resistant over time to these treatments. Her work focuses on two important cellular signalling systems that help cells respond to DNA damage. Her previous research has revealed that these two systems can combine to form a previously unknown hybrid signal, which cancer cells may exploit to survive treatment.
“We’ve discovered a new way that cells communicate when DNA is damaged, and believe cancer cells may hijack this process to escape treatment,” said Rebecca.
“By understanding this signalling in detail, we can identify new points where therapies could intervene.”
In the long term, this research could help guide the development of next-generation cancer therapies. With synergies with studies being carried out in the labs of Associate Professors Andrew Deans and Elaine Sanij, Rebecca’s appointment strengthens SVI’s leadership in DNA repair research and brings fresh momentum to efforts to improve outcomes for people living with cancer.