Dr Donia Moujalled

Dr Donia Moujalled is a Senior Research Fellow at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, where she leads a research team investigating acute leukemias across paediatric and adult patients.

Her research focuses on B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML), with an emphasis on identifying and targeting key survival dependencies, including apoptosis and metabolic pathways. A central aim of her work is to overcome treatment failure—particularly resistance to immunotherapy by developing novel targeted therapeutic strategies.

Dr Moujalled leads translational research programs that integrate patient-derived bone marrow samples, patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models, and humanised model systems. Through these approaches, her team develops innovative combination therapies and uncovers the mechanisms driving treatment response and resistance. She has contributed to the development of targeted therapies that have progressed to Phase I clinical trials and is a named inventor on multiple patents for novel therapeutic combinations. Her work has included close collaboration with industry partners, including Servier, to advance promising new drugs toward clinical application. Dr Moujalled has secured over $3.5 million in competitive research funding, including a Victorian Cancer Agency Mid-Career Fellowship,  Cancer Australia Project Grants, and funding from Cancer Council Victoria and Cancer Council NSW.

In addition to her research, she has contributed to the education of undergraduate Biomedical Science students at Monash University. She is also committed to mentoring early-career researchers and supporting girls in STEM through initiatives including the Bionics Institute

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