Kathy Fuller

Dr. Kathy Fuller is an Associate Professor of Translational Oncology at The University of Western Australia, serving in the School of Biomedical Sciences within the Pathology and Laboratory Science department. She holds the position of Head of Discipline for Pathology and Laboratory Science and serves as Scientific Lead in the Translational Cancer Pathology Laboratory (TCPL).

Dr. Fuller earned her PhD from The University of Western Australia for research into the effects of post-surgical nutrition on gut immunity. Her academic journey includes postdoctoral research at Thrombogenix at Monash University and leadership roles in flow cytometry facilities at UWA, where she developed the Sperm Chromatin Structure Assay (SCSA) for diagnostic use.

Her research focuses on developing imaging cytometry protocols for diagnosis and prognosis in haematological malignancies. She investigates megakaryocyte dysregulation in Myeloproliferative Neoplasms and biomarkers for colorectal carcinoma metastasis. Dr. Fuller is particularly known for co-inventing 'immuno-flowFISH,' a patented automated flow cytometry method that detects chromosome signals inside immunophenotyped cells.

Her recent publications demonstrate a strong emphasis on applying advanced cytometry to detect chromosomal abnormalities across various leukemias, with multiple 2025 publications showing the ongoing impact of her methodological innovations in cancer diagnostics.

Dr. Fuller has received significant recognition including:

• Australian Museum ANSTO 2018 Eureka Prize for Innovative Use of Technology
• Queen's Trust for Young Australians Award
• WA Young Australian of the Year Award (Science and Technology)
• Raine Medical Research Foundation grant

She actively mentors PhD students and has secured substantial funding from NHMRC, Cancer Council WA, Channel 7 Telethon Trust, and Perpetual Philanthropic Services. Her current projects focus on leukemia prevention, novel blood tests for myeloproliferative neoplasms, and improving outcomes for blood cancer patients.

Dr. Fuller leads the Translational Cancer Pathology Laboratory where her team develops diagnostic methods with direct clinical applications, particularly in hematological malignancy diagnostics and minimal residual disease detection.