Children's Cancer Institute

Research theme

Research group

Biography

Associate Professor Joshua (Josh) McCarroll is Team Leader in the Gene Therapeutics and Drug Delivery Group at Children’s Cancer Institute and Conjoint Associate Professor in the Faculty of Medicine at UNSW Sydney. As a survivor of childhood cancer, Josh understands better than most the importance of finding new cures and treatments for this most devastating of childhood diseases.

Josh’s work focuses on developing tiny ‘nano-vehicles’ that can package and deliver therapeutic drugs to cancer cells in solid tumours such as neuroblastoma and brain cancer. Through penetrating tumours and delivering a high drug dose to cancer cells while minimising the exposure of healthy cells, it is hoped that treatment with these nanoparticles can inhibit tumour growth while reducing unwanted side effects. Josh and his team also have an interest in identifying novel biomarkers which can be used to predict and monitor treatment response.

Josh learnt how to use cutting-edge technologies to develop nanotechnology and RNA interference (RNAi) molecules as therapeutics to treat human disease while working as a postdoctoral scientist at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, USA. Since joining Children’s Cancer Institute in 2007, he has made significant contributions to our understanding of cancer biology and the use of nanotechnology to treat childhood cancer and has received several awards for his work.

In 2018, Josh was promoted to the newly created position of Team Leader. This position is supported by the Olivia Lambert Foundation, established in memory of Olivia Lambert who died from the childhood cancer neuroblastoma at six years of age.

Josh describes the appointment as an honour. ‘To know this was made possible by the tireless fundraising efforts of Oliva’s family is inspiring and something I think about every day.’