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In a collaboration between Castrol, Tickford Racing, and the Randle family - Randle is raising funds to support the ONTrac at Peter Mac Victorian Adolescent & Young Adult Cancer Service. 

The cause is a personal one for the 26-year old Victorian. ONTrac at Peter Mac is a multidisciplinary service providing care for adolescents and young adults affected by cancer.

Diagnosed with testicular cancer in early 2020, Randle sought support from ONTrac at Peter Mac throughout his treatment, and now serves as a member of the Victorian Youth Cancer Action Board, helping to improve services and support for young cancer patients and their families.

Now 18 months cancer-free and in the midst of his first full season in the Supercars Championship, Randle is giving back to the service that supported him on his journey.

“I am really honoured to be representing Peter Mac on the grid for this year’s Sandown SuperSprint,” Randle said ahead of unveiling the car at Peter Mac on Thursday.

“Peter Mac were instrumental in treating me during my period with testicular cancer, while also providing me with further assistance from the ONTrac at Peter Mac service, which provides support to adolescents and young adults affected by cancer.

“Last year we held a ride day at Sandown for a bunch of young patients, so it is going to be great to replicate that after the round this year.

“We’ll also have 100 Peter Mac staff and patients past and present joining us across the weekend to cheer on the Castrol Racing Mustang! I am also very excited to be launching a Castrol Racing Peter Mac fundraiser to help drive towards a cancer-free future, where all donations will be going towards ONTrac at Peter Mac.

As a current board member of the Victorian Youth Cancer Action Board, I am really excited for this initiative and really hope that people can get behind the fundraiser and help make a life changing difference for people living with cancer.”

Several fundraising opportunities will be rolled out across the Sandown race event allowing fans to directly support young people with cancer.

One race fan will win the bonnet of the No. 55 Castrol Racing Ford Mustang, with Lloyds Auctions managing an online auction across the weekend, from which all proceeds will go to the Peter MacCallum Cancer Foundation.

A portion of sales of Tickford Racing merchandise at the Sandown SuperSprint will be donated to the service.

Direct donations can also be made on Castrol Racing’s fundraising page. 

Dr Jeremy Lewin, Medical Director of the ONTrac at Peter Mac, welcomes the support from Randle and company, which will help drive attention and donations to the service that aims to improve outcomes for young people with cancer.

“We are thrilled to have such fantastic support from Thomas and the team at Castrol Racing through their program across the Sandown weekend,” Dr Lewin said.

“Our service exists to help young people with cancer navigate the extra challenges we know they face. The years 15-25 are a critical period for a person’s development and trajectory in life, and facing a cancer diagnosis and its treatment during that time can be particularly disruptive.

"The service provides a range of supports aimed at improving outcomes and experiences of young people with cancer. We have worked closely with Thomas since his own cancer diagnosis in 2020, and are delighted to see him doing so well today, and also by his work in support of our service.”

Supports provided by ONTrac at Peter Mac are designed to sit alongside a young person’s cancer treatment and cover everything from exercise and nutrition to mental health, and help to navigate education, employment or family challenges that can arise.

In addition to driving donations, Castrol has also moved to create lasting experiences for young people in the Peter Mac program, providing 100 passes to the weekend’s Sandown SuperSprint to young patients.

Over a dozen young people will also go for the ride of their life with Thomas on Monday, riding shotgun aboard the Castrol Racing Ford Mustang at a team ride day.

Castrol’s Jan Willink, Brand & Product Marketing Manager, ANZ, expressed his delight in supporting the ONTrac at Peter Mac service through Tickford’s rising star, Randle.

“Castrol is extremely proud to support the work done by Peter Mac through their adolescent and young adult cancer service. Whether it’s raising awareness, funds, or simply providing unique opportunities for those involved with Peter Mac programs, we’re thrilled that Castrol can play a small role. I know that the most enjoyable laps Thomas Randle drives this year in the Castrol Racing Mustang will be those with passengers from Peter Mac!”

It means these treatments could affect the future fertility and hormonal health of female cancer survivors, prompting experts to call for more research and preventative measures, such as freezing eggs.

Led by the Biomedicine Discovery Institute at Monash University and the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, the pre-clinical trial showed that immune checkpoint inhibitors, a common type of immunotherapy drug, resulted in permanent damage to mouse ovaries and the eggs stored inside.

Traditional cancer therapies, such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, are already linked to permanent, negative side effects on the ovaries. This can lead to infertility and premature menopause in young girls and women.

Published in Nature Cancer, researchers found that checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy reduced the number and quality of their eggs, interfered with ovulation, and disrupted the fertility cycle.

Until now the potential fertility side effects of immunotherapy, an emerging and increasingly common cancer treatment that stimulates the immune system, have been unknown.

The study found that a type of immunotherapy called immune checkpoint inhibitors, which ‘release the brakes’ on the immune system to enhance a patient's ability to fight cancer, could impair immediate and future fertility.

Its authors said studies in female patients were now needed to investigate the findings. In the meantime, fertility preservation through egg or embryo freezing should be considered for women using these immunotherapies.

Co-lead author Lauren Alesi, a PhD candidate in the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute Ovarian Biology Laboratory, said human studies must now be prioritised.
“Initially these treatments were thought to be less damaging (than chemo and radiotherapy) in the context of off-target effects to the body in general,” Ms Alesi said.

“However, it is now clear that inflammatory side effects in other organ systems are quite common with these drugs.

“Our study highlights that caution should be exercised by clinicians and their patients, for whom fertility may be a concern. Studies in women receiving these drugs must now be prioritised.”

Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre Specialist Medical Oncologist Professor in breast cancer and a senior author on the study Sherene Loi said further research into how these drugs impact the ovarian function and fertility of women receiving these drugs must be prioritised and should be included in future clinical trials involving women of reproductive age.

“Our study further highlights that fertility discussions are critical for all age appropriate women who are recommended to receive chemotherapy as well as immunotherapy,” Professor Loi said.

“Appropriate interventions that can preserve fertility and ovarian function can be implemented to facilitate pregnancies in the future, post completion of treatment. These interventions need to be implemented in a timely manner, so as not to delay anti-cancer treatment.

“Immunotherapy is now becoming a standard of care for many women with curable early stage breast cancer, due to impressive results in reducing breast cancer recurrences, but further research into the long-term effects of immunotherapy is needed.”

Apart from drugs that block ovaries from producing hormones during chemotherapy, and strategies to prevent premature menopause in younger women, Ms Alesi said egg and embryo freezing was the only fertility preservation measure available.

She said it was important to remember that embryo freezing was expensive, invasive and did not prevent ovarian damage. This meant that premature menopause could still be a risk for these women.

“Therefore, we are now prioritising investigation of targeted ovarian preservation strategies that aim to prevent the damage to the ovary from occurring in the first place, without interfering with the drugs’ ability to fight the cancer” she said.

Ms Alesi said other immunotherapy classes also need to be assessed.

“Our results may have implications for other immunotherapies, since our results have revealed a close relationship between immune cells, the communication molecules (cytokines) they release, and regulating many aspects of fertility,” she said.

Read the full paper published in Nature Cancer, titled Checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy diminishes oocyte number and quality in mice:

MEDIA ENQUIRIES:

• Cheryl Critchley, Media Manager (medical), Monash University
• E: [email protected] M: +61 (0)418 312 596 Monash Media: E: [email protected] T: +61 (0) 3 9903 4840
• For interviews with Professor Sherene Loi, please contact: Danny Rose, Media Manager, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.
• E: [email protected] M: 0417 123 048