The Hunter Medical Research Institute will benefit from a federal funding injection of $16.2 million for eight research projects to help treat ovarian cancer.
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The money has been welcomed as a win for Newcastle ovarian cancer campaigner Jill Emberson, who died from the disease in December.
The former ABC Newcastle radio presenter founded the Pink Meets Teal campaign, after she was diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer in February 2016.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt announced the funding on Friday to mark World Ovarian Cancer Day.
Hunter researchers have been awarded $2.69 million for their program that repurposes drugs for treatment-resistant patients.
This involves using existing drugs that have already been proven to be safe and effective.
Small studies have shown "great promise in this area".
The researchers - Associate Professor Nikola Bowden, Professor Jennifer Martin, Dr Michelle Wong-Brown and Dr Penny Reeves - are part of the University of Newcastle and HMRI.
Associate Professor Bowden became friends with Ms Emberson, but their relationship wasn't always plain sailing.
In 2014, the pair had a falling out over a story Ms Emberson was covering on the ABC at the time about the links between diet and cancer.
"We didn't have anything to do with each other for a couple of years after that, then she got her ovarian cancer diagnosis," Associate Professor Bowden said.
"I was funded by the McGuigan family - the winemakers. They pay my salary. They've given a big donation to HMRI for me to work on ovarian cancer.
"When that was announced [in 2017], Jill sent me a really beautiful letter apologising and wanting to meet and talk.
"Both of us admitted we were a bit too strong-willed. We became the best of allies. We worked very closely together right up until she passed away."
Associate Professor Bowden vowed to continue Ms Emberson's legacy.
She said the funding would allow the team to work on a project to "help us narrow down drugs which may be able to be used in treating ovarian cancer".
The team will screen "all the known drugs that have been approved for human reuse".
"We have 20 biological processes we know are involved in ovarian cancer that we're systematically screening to see if we can find drugs that will block those processes."
Artificial intelligence will be used to remove human bias in decision-making.
Trials will be done to assess drug capability.
This could lead to multiple treatment options for patients instead of them having no options.
The idea to repurpose existing drugs came through "hardcore science in the lab".
"We started to discover we could kill melanoma cells using some really old chemotherapy drugs," Associate Professor Bowden said.
That project has now gone to clinical trial.
"We're treating patients in Newcastle successfully with our drug combination."
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