Professor Mike Sathekge, head of the Department of Nuclear Medicine at the University of Pretoria (UP), and Steve Biko Academic Hospital, as well as president and CEO of NuMeRI, with his Harry Oppenheimer Fellowship Award at the announcement ceremony at the Brenthurst Library.
A University of Pretoria professor has been awarded a R3 million research grant to develop a pioneering approach to diagnosing and treating aggressive breast cancer, research that could improve survival rates and cement South Africa's role in precision cancer medicine.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer affecting women in South Africa and globally, yet many patients are diagnosed only after the disease has spread, making treatment more difficult and reducing their chances of survival.
Researchers believe the new approach could eventually enable doctors to detect aggressive breast cancer earlier, tailor treatment to individual patients, and improve outcomes while reducing unnecessary treatment.
Professor Mike Sathekge, head of the Department of Nuclear Medicine at the University of Pretoria and the Steve Biko Academic Hospital, has received the 2025 Harry Oppenheimer Fellowship Award from the Oppenheimer Memorial Trust (OMT) to advance research into theranostics, an emerging field of nuclear medicine that combines diagnosis with targeted treatment.
