Understanding Brain Cancer: Glioblastoma and the Immune System

Talks on Tuesdays is a live event series bringing big ideas, real experts, and curious minds together - at your favourite local venues. Think thought-provoking lectures, audience questions, and post-talk mingling over drinks and dinner.

This isn’t a uni lecture. It’s a social, intelligent night out.Come alone or with friends, leave with something to talk about.

Event Schedule:

6.30pm Arrival & Doors Open

7pm Lecuture Starts

7.45pm Q&A

8pm Talk Concludes

8.30pm Event Closes.

*Please arrive close to 6.30pm

A La Carte menu and full bar available throughout the night - pay as you go.

Your Topic:
Understanding Brain Cancer: Glioblastoma and the Immune System

Glioblastoma is one of the most aggressive and deadly brain cancers, with limited treatment options and a devastatingly short survival time. Understanding how these tumors grow, and how the immune system responds, is critical in improving quality of life for patients.

In this session, PhD student Sarah MacDonald takes us inside the complex biology of glioblastoma. She’ll explore how the P2X7R receptor shapes tumor behaviour, why its expression rises across the entire body in cancer patients, and what is happening in the immune landscape of brain tumors. Drawing on her own research journey, Sarah will unpack emerging insights that could guide future therapeutic strategies.

Your Speaker:

Sarah Macdonald is a PhD candidate in the Department of Neuroscience at Monash University, where she investigates the immune environment in glioblastoma. Her research focuses on the role of cell receptor P2X7R, how it shapes tumor behaviour, and whether inhibiting it could offer a new therapeutic pathway. Originally from New Zealand, Sarah moved to Australia to pursue cancer research and brings an engaging, insider's perspective on how the field is evolving.