Optimising Children & Young People's Precision Medicine Cancer Care

A national program of health services research focused on developing a National Health Systems Sustainability Framework for Precision Cancer Care for Children and Young People. Working with Cancer Australia, consumers and key state and national stakeholders to create a practical blueprint for embedding precision medicine into routine paediatric oncology care across Australia.

The challenge

Cancer remains the leading cause of disease-related death in children and young people, and access to optimal cancer care is still uneven across Australia. Children from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, rural and remote areas, CALD backgrounds, and socioeconomically disadvantaged families often face greater barriers to advanced diagnostics, genomic testing, psychosocial support and coordinated care.

Our approach

Uses the ZERO-2 Study as a national test case. Brings together implementation science, health economics, equity analysis and co-design, organised around four integrated components: implementation, economic evaluation, equity, and co-design of a National Health Systems Sustainability Framework.

Key goals

• Develop a national implementation framework for precision cancer care for children and young people.

• Understand what the health system needs to deliver precision oncology effectively and sustainably.

• Assess the cost and cost-effectiveness of the ZERO-2 program compared with standard care.

• Improve cultural safety and equity of access across population groups, locations and age groups.

• Support integration of genomic-guided cancer care into a National Optimal Care Pathway.

Evaluation & impact

Expected outcomes include a sustainable and scalable model of care, safer and more personalised treatment options, improved equity of access, a workforce better equipped to deliver genomic and culturally safe care, and a clearer understanding of the economic implications of national implementation.