Equitable Precision Cancer Care Youth
Towards Equitable and Patient-Centred Precision Medicine for Young People with Cancer and their Families
Published on the 08 October 2026 by UNSW Scientia PhD Project
This project is part of the UNSW Scientia PhD Scholarship Scheme
Successful applicants will receive an annual stipend and a one-off Global Mobility Grant to conduct international engagement activities.
This PhD project offers a unique opportunity to contribute to Australia's leading precision medicine initiative for children and young people with cancer. Using data from the ZERO2 Experiences study within the Zero Childhood Cancer Program, the candidate will explore how children, adolescents, young adults and their families experience precision medicine, and how these experiences influence psychosocial outcomes.
The project will involve analysing large-scale psychosocial and clinical data to understand how factors such as geographic location, cultural and linguistic background, access to support, and experiences of consent and genomic result disclosure shape quality of life, satisfaction with participation, and decisional regret. Findings will inform best-practice approaches to communication and support.
The successful candidate will join a multidisciplinary team spanning psycho-oncology, genomics and clinical research, and will undertake a research placement at Stanford Medicine's Quality of Life for All Lab, gaining international training and mentorship in paediatric psycho-oncology and patient-centred research.
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- Residency: Domestic applicants only.
- Degree program: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).
You must meet the minimum requirements below to apply:
- An appropriate Bachelor degree with first or upper second class Honours from UNSW: OR
- A completed Master by Research, with a substantial research component and demonstrated capacity for timely completion of a high-quality research thesis; OR
- a qualification from another tertiary institution at a level considered equivalent by the Faculty Higher Degree Committee (HDC)
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Eligible applicants must contact the Primary Supervisor, Kate Hetherington - z2211993@ad.unsw.edu.au. If she agrees to supervise you, you will be invited to submit a formal application to UNSW.
Your email should include:
- CV
- Official academic transcripts
- A brief introduction about you and why you are qualified for this project.
- What interests you about this project and the supervisor(s) expertise.
Research project overview
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Scholarship value
$39,991 per annum (2027 rate) stipend for 3.5 years
$25,000 Global Mobility Grant (one-off) -
Supervisory team
Dr Kate Hetherington (UNSW, Primary Supervisor)
Associate Professor Loretta Lau (UNSW, Co-Supervisor)
Professor Claire Wakefield (Stanford University, Co-Supervisor)
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Global research partner
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Candidate residency
Domestic
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Degree program
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
UNSW School | Research area
Faculty of Medicine & Health | School of Clinical Medicine
Impact focus area
Pillar 8: Enable healthy lives
Learn more
Supervisors
Do you have questions?
The UNSW Graduate Research School manages all postgraduate research applications and scholarships. Get in touch with our team to discuss your research interests and the next steps.