2024 ACvA Excellence in Cardiovascular Research Awards
Last
Thursday, we celebrated the 2024 ACvA Excellence in Cardiovascular Research
Awards in Brisbane. It’s always such an honour to publicly celebrate and
acknowledge the leadership, collaboration and innovation within our sector.
It’s also a reminder of the breadth and diversity of the cardiovascular and
stroke research spectrum.
We had a wonderful introduction from the Honourable Ged
Kearney MP, Assistant Minister for Health & Aged Care who shared how
important mentoring had been for her during both her nursing career and early
days in parliament. She gave ‘heartfelt’ congratulations to researchers saying,
“You are all making a difference. The future is so promising thanks to the
brilliant discoveries being made by Australian researchers.”
Australian Cardiovascular Alliance President Professor Jason Kovacic and Implementation & Policy Flagship Co-director and
Scientific Advisory Committee member Professor Julie Redfern introduced
the Finalists and presented the Awards.
Our new ACvA CEO, Rob
Tassie, welcomed the opportunity to connect with our
incredible members and stakeholders. He celebrated the sector’s achievements
and ongoing impact saying, “We are proud to recognise and celebrate the
groundbreaking research and innovative solutions in our sector that are
improving the health outcomes available for all Australians and are a vital
part of sustaining our reputation for world-class research.”
The 2024 Game Changer Award was won by Professor
John Fraser AO and Critical Care Research Group,
headquartered at The Prince Charles Hospital.
The Critical
Care Research Group (CCRG) has pioneered a transformative approach to heart
transplantation that has already saved hundreds of lives. CCRG led the
preclinical trials and clinical implementation of Hypothermic Oxygenated
Machine Perfusion (HOPE), a technique that can extend donor heart preservation
from four to over 12 hours. This game-changing technology has revolutionised
the practice of heart transplantation by increasing organ availability
globally.
The Mentor Award recognises the crucial contribution that guidance, support,
and knowledge-sharing play in nurturing the next generation of researchers,
fostering a positive culture and constructing a sustainable research sector.
This year’s Mentor award recipient was Professor Mark Cooper AO from Monash University.
Professor Cooper AO, a world-leading researcher in diabetes and its
complications, has been inspiring the next generation of researchers over the
past three decades. His transformative approach to mentorship extends far
beyond traditional academic guidance. Mentees say that Professor Cooper’s
dedication and accessibility characterise his support and mentorship. He
encourages his students and mentees to ask critical questions, push boundaries
and reimagine the intersection of clinical practice and scientific discovery.
The ACvA
Translation award recognises the outstanding achievements of researchers who
have translated observations from the laboratory or unmet needs seen in the
clinic into interventions that have real-life impact for patients. The winner
of the 2024 Translation Award was Professor
Nathan Palpant and
team – Professor Glenn King, Dr Natalie Saez, Professor Robert Graham, and
Professor Peter Macdonald – for their outstanding collaborative work in
developing a drug candidate derived from the K’gari funnel-web spider venom to
reduce tissue damage following heart attack and stroke, addressing a global
unmet need.
This innovation
has the potential to save thousands of lives as well as improve the
preservation of donor hearts for transplantation. The breakthrough emerged from
a collaborative effort between the University of Queensland’s Institute of
Molecular Bioscience and the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute.
The winners were chosen from a shortlist of 9 Finalists from across the country
who represent the diversity within the cardiovascular and stroke research
sector including work on Rheumatic Heart Disease, gut microbes which can reduce
blood pressure, the link between heart damage and kidney disease and innovation
in precision medicine.
We’d like to sincerely thank this year’s judges
- Jo Case, Tony Penna, Julie Redfern, Jelena Rnjak-Kovacina, Chris Reid, Clara
Chow, Christina Frenzel, Geoff Donnan, and Jodi Glading-Johnson for their time
and commitment, and having the very difficult job of selecting the finalists
and winners.
We would also like to extend our thanks to all the people who put
in an application this year. You are very welcome to re-nominate for this year’s awards. Keep an eye out – applications open in August.
You can read about all of the 2024 Finalists HERE.
