Dr Brooke Pereira

Dr Brooke Pereira completed her PhD at Monash University in 2019. She is a Fulbright Scholar and a Senior Research Officer at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney. There, she leads a program of work investigating new targets in pancreatic cancer within the Cancer Invasion and Metastasis Laboratory, which is headed by Professor Paul Timpson. Additionally, she holds an appointment as a Conjoint Senior Lecturer (Level C) at the University of New South Wales (UNSW).

Dr Pereira's research program focuses on overcoming the lethal barriers of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), a disease characterised by a dense, fibrous microenvironment and poor blood supply that can drive tumour progression and treatment resistance. Her work aims to identify and target molecular vulnerabilities within the pancreatic stroma by integrating mass spectrometry (MS) proteomics, multiphoton intravital imaging, and biosensor technology, heavily utilising the ACRF INCITe Intravital Imaging Centre. She is a founding executive member of the Australian Pancreatic Cancer Matrix Atlas (APMA) within the Australian Pancreatic Cancer Genomic Initiative (APGI), managing a global resource of clinically annotated, stroma-rich patient models.

To support her research, Dr Pereira has secured over $3.4 million in competitive peer-reviewed funding as a Principal Investigator from major bodies, including the NHMRC, Pankind (Australian Pancreatic Cancer Foundation), and the Cancer Institute NSW, among others. In 2025, she was awarded a Fulbright Future Scholarship to conduct research at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Pennsylvania, USA, within the laboratory of Professor Edna Cukierman.

Dr Pereira has an established record of scientific leadership and mentorship. She currently serves as co-primary supervisor for two PhD candidates, and has successfully guided a further three PhD students through to completion. She has published over 40 papers spanning cancer biology, proteomics, and imaging, resulting in more than 2,000 citations and an h-index of 18. Her leading work includes high-impact publications in Science Advances, Biomaterials, Molecular and Cellular Proteomics, and Trends in Cancer, alongside significant co-authored contributions in Nature Cancer, Nature Communications, and several APGI consortium papers.