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Image for illustrative purposes only.
"Like a lot of country blokes, I'd never really been to the doctor - we think we're bulletproof. But, when I noticed an unusual lump near my waist, I knew it was finally time to go."
Rob Daley is from Deniliquin, a small town 300km from Melbourne and 165kms from Bendigo. He was referred to Bendigo Health’s oncology team after tests confirmed he had an aggressive carcinoma.
An intensive regime of radiation and chemotherapy was successful in tackling the cancer initially, however, routine follow-up scans confirmed the cancer was back almost a year to the day of the initial diagnosis.
"Rather than more radiation and chemotherapy, a clinical trial was suggested for me. I had no idea what one was, but I knew I was in the best hands, I was happy to do what they suggested," he said.
Rob went on an immunotherapy clinical trial, which, today has shown such great results that the cancer is currently undetectable and he is now in follow-up care.
"The results have been incredible, it’s blown me away. We need to make sure regional and rural people know about clinical trials and that we continue to have them available," he said.
It is thanks to clinical trials being closer to home that many patients like Rob are now opting to go into one because they are becoming increasingly more available locally.
The federal government launched TrialHub in 2020, an Australian-first pilot that is based at Alfred Health in Melbourne, to support six outer metro, regional and rural hospitals with establishing their own clinical trial units.
TrialHub is partnership model that leverages the expertise of a hospital with a large clinical trial portfolio (The Alfred Hospital) and supports regional and rural hospitals with what they need to be able to deliver clinical trials independently.
The Victorian pilot sites have been Latrobe Regional Health, Bendigo Health, Bass Coast Health, Northern Health, Mildura Base Public Hospital, and Peninsula Health.
A clinical trial is a way to access new treatments, medicines, interventions and medical devices. These trial options have already shown better results, they are just not available to everyone yet.
Key outcomes from the program have included;
- More than 1000 patients have accessed a local clinical trial.
- Development of an Australian-first clinical trial capability tool.
- The establishment of a rare cancer alliance to tackle the limited access to regional and rural treatment options.
- An upskilling program that formalises the clinical trial workforce. This has also led to the creation of new jobs in clinical trials and research outside of Melbourne.
TrialHub’s current pilot, and funding, ends June 2025 but it is hoped the program is able to continue not just for Victorians, but for regional and rural communities across Australia.
Another regional patient, Steve Wadey, has benefited from a clinical trial. Diagnosed at just 28-years-old with melanoma, and living almost 400km from Melbourne, he’s relapsed five times –it’s thanks to clinical trials he’s alive today.
He is TrialHub’s flagship ambassador and promotes the benefits of trials across his community.
“The need for accessible, localised clinical trials is not just important; it’s life-saving. TrialHub offers a way for patients in even the most remote locations to receive tomorrow’s treatments, today. By continuing to expand local access to all sorts of trials, TrialHub is giving patients the chance to receive state-of- the-art care without the added burden of travel, time off work, or the physical and emotional toll of managing serious illness far from home,” he said.
Read more about TrialHub
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