Following a competitive international call for submissions, the Global Ovarian Cancer Research Consortium (GOCRC) recently announced the recipient of their inaugural AI Accelerator Grant.

The successful project, AI to Predict Exceptional and Poor Survival from Real-World Biomarkers for Clinical Application, focuses on high-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSOC), the most common and deadly form of the disease.

Despite advances in treatment, clinicians still have limited ability to predict how an individual’s cancer will behave or which therapies are most likely to be effective.

The AI Accelerator Grant is a $1.4 million (USD $1M) global research award, with an additional $1.4 million (USD $1M) in compute support from Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab.

International collaboration to accelerate progress

The large research team behind the successful project is led by experts from four countries, representing epidemiology, molecular oncology, artificial intelligence, and clinical medicine, bringing complementary skills to the project:

• Dr. (Celeste) Leigh Pearce, Lead Researcher, Professor, Rogel Cancer Center and Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan, United States;
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• Professor Susan Ramus, Professor in the School of Clinical Medicine and Lead, Molecular Oncology Group, University of New South Wales Sydney, Australia;
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• Dr. Ali Bashashati, Director of Artificial Intelligence Research, Ovarian Cancer Research Program (OVCARE), University of British Columbia, Canada; and
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• Professor James Brenton, Professor of Ovarian Cancer Medicine, Senior Group Leader and Honorary Consultant in Medical Oncology, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom.

In total, researchers from 10 institutes are involved, including three more from Australia: Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute and Westmead Institute for Medical Research, as well as an Australian lived experience advisor, Ms Bronwyn Grout.

The team will analyse one of the world’s largest international ovarian cancer datasets, combining tumour samples, clinical records, immune profiles, genetics and lifestyle factors from thousands of patients.

Using AI, they aim to uncover patterns tied to survival and treatment response that current methods often miss.

The models will be tested in historical and modern patient groups, including those on new therapies, to develop decision-support tools for hospital use.

By better matching patients to treatments and trials, the project aims to personalise care, reduce side effects, and improve survival for people with ovarian cancer.

Australian Chief Investigator on the project, Professor Susan Ramus from UNSW Sydney said, “Despite robust data, conventional statistical models have had limited success identifying distinct markers of longer survival,”

“The goal is to use AI to uncover more complex patterns and develop robust tools to personalise treatment and improve patient outcomes.”

The project aims to better match patients to treatments and trials, personalise care, reduce side effects and improve survival for people with ovarian cancer.

Robin Penty, CEO of the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation, the Australian partner in the GOCRC says the nature of this grant offers the innovation that is so desperately needed for this devastating disease.

“For too long, ovarian cancer has been left in the shadows – complex, underfunded, and devastating for too many women,” said Penty

“This new project, enhanced by the generous support of Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab, could signal a turning point,”

“By harnessing the best of artificial intelligence, scientific collaboration, and global philanthropy, we can finally start unlocking the answers that have held back progress for decades,” she said.

Harnessing technology to drive real change

Microsoft is generously partnering on this grant through its AI for Good Lab, donating up to $1.4 million in in-kind Azure compute credits to the project.

The computing support will enable the research team to accelerate large-scale data analysis essential to the project’s goals.

“New discoveries are urgently needed to unlock lifesaving treatments for ovarian cancer,” said Juan Lavista Ferres, Microsoft Chief Data Scientist and Director of Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab. “

“This work demonstrates what becomes possible when deep scientific expertise is paired with cutting‑edge AI,“

“By equipping leading researchers around the world with advanced AI tools and computing resources, we can accelerate their critical efforts that have the potential to save lives, “ Lavista said.