Prudence A. Francis MBBS, B Med Sc, FRACP, MD

Prue Francis is Clinical Head of Breast Medical Oncology at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia. She received her medical degree from the University of Melbourne and completed Medical Oncology training at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, where she spent 4 years. Since returning to Australia she focused her research on breast cancer randomized clinical trials (i.e. BIG 2-98, SOFT) with prospective tissue collection to facilitate translational research. She chairs the Steering Committee for the SOFT and TEXT trials which have led to changes in adjuvant endocrine therapy recommendations for young women with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer.

Dr. Francis is Chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee of Breast Cancer Trials Australia & New Zealand (BCT-ANZ) which has been conducting clinical trials since 1978. The multidisciplinary group has enrolled more than 15,000 women in national and international clinical trials across the disease spectrum from breast cancer prevention, DCIS, early-stage disease, and neoadjuvant therapy, through to advanced breast cancer trials. The group trials variously involve escalation or de-escalation strategies, with an emphasis on biobanking, and quality of life assessment.