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Ed. Note: The following is a press
release from Research Australia.
October 8, 2006 --
Within a decade Australians will
be able to find out how good their genes are at fighting disease, which
environmental risks they are susceptible to and steps they should take to
prevent the onset of ill-health. And by the turn of the century it will be
commonplace to have a bad combination of genes repaired to avoid disease.
'Then, Now…Imagine', a new report
compiled by Research Australia in consultation with 10 of the country's
leading health and medical researchers including two Nobel Prize winners and
four Australians of the Year, predicts individual gene profiling from blood
samples will revolutionise healthcare within ten years.
2006 Australian of the Year,
Professor Ian Frazer, who discovered the technology that led to the newly
released cervical cancer vaccine, said the upshot will be the ability to
develop personalised healthcare plans – a roadmap for health from the day of
birth.
"Doctors will be able to predict
what health problems we might get so we can take appropriate precautions.
They will also be able to assess what treatments will work best on an
individual basis to achieve optimum health results. Long-term it will be
possible to avoid certain diseases altogether through gene therapy," he
said.
Sponsored by MBF, the report has
been released by Research Australia to commemorate "Thank You" Day (14
November 2006), Australians' annual opportunity to send personal messages of
appreciation to medical researchers whose work is special to them via
http://www.thankyouday.org/ or
0428THANKS. "Thank You" Day is held each year with the support of the
Macquarie Bank Foundation.
Five other key forecasts are:
Further advances in understanding
how 'blank' or 'uncoded' cells in their very early stages of development
switch on to become specific types of cells, like liver, skin and nerve
cells, mean cures for diseases like Parkinson's, Diabetes and Multiple
Sclerosis will be entirely possible. With the right prompts these 'stem
cells' – which everybody has - can develop into organs and tissue to
replaced damaged areas.
As a result of DNA technology
'smart drugs' will increasingly be used to target cancer at the source.
Current chemotherapy attacks all cells in the body with healthy ones
recovering first. One of the first smart drugs, Herceptin, binds to the
surface of specific breast cancer cells and slows their ability to
reproduce. With further research, more smart drugs with increasing power
will be available for all manner of cancers, reducing the trauma of
treatment and dramatically improving outcomes.
The world-first cervical cancer
vaccine is only the first of its kind. Scientists predict viruses will be
found to play a role in many other cancers and in the course of the next few
decades we can expect a raft of new vaccines to prevent their onset.
Therapeutic vaccines are also
well advanced in development and involve re-educating the immune system to
recognise cancer cells as intruders and attack them.
And over the next few decades we
are likely see vaccines for many viral infections like HIV/AIDS and
Hepatitis C, and for major diseases like diabetes. In fact Melbourne's
Diabetes Vaccine Development Centre is about to start clinical trials for a
new vaccine for Type 1 Diabetes.
Australian-invented bionic ears,
or Cochlear implants, that allow deaf children to hear will be further
advanced to deliver high-fidelity hearing, with a carbon tube built molecule
by molecule carrying the electricity needed to stimulate nerve cells.
This technology will also be
applied to other disabilities. We will be able to reconnect electrical
wiring in damaged spinal columns, stimulate nerve growth and allow messages
to be relayed to the brain. Further into the future, this could ultimately
allow quadriplegics and paraplegics to walk again. Other applications are
likely to include correcting the faulty circuits that create epileptic
episodes and creating transport systems for slow release of insulin to
diabetics.
Advances in microsurgery and the
capacity of ultrasound to monitor development will soon see unborn babies
undergoing complex surgery to correct abnormalities like holes in the heart
and facial malformations, strengthening their chances of survival and
improving their quality of life.
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You can download the full 'Then,
Now…Imagine' Report from
http://www.thankyouday.org/. From 9 October until 17 November you can
also send you personal message of thanks to Australia's health and medical
researchers via the website or you can text it to 0428THANKS.
Scientists Who Contributed To
'Then, Now…Imagine'
Dr Robin Warren, Nobel Laureate
2005 - with Barry Marshall, proved a bacteria called helicobacter pylori
caused gastritis and stomach ulcers and that most ulcers could be
permanently cured with antibiotics.
Professor Peter Doherty, Nobel
Laureate 1996 – Discovered that T-cells, the foot soldiers in our
bloodstream, were expert at killing cells that had viruses locked inside.
This has led to new and better vaccines, healthy organ transplants and
better treatment of conditions like Multiple Sclerosis and Diabetes.
Professor Ian Frazer, Australian
of the Year 2006 – Gained international fame for developing the world's
first vaccine to combat cervical cancer.
Dr Fiona Wood, Australian of the
Year 2004 - Headed up the team of doctors who treated the burns victims of
the 2002 Bali bombing. Her use of 'spray on skin' sped up the recovery
process for those who had suffered horrific burns.
Professor Fiona Stanley,
Australian of the Year 2003 - With Carol Bower, as part of an international
collaboration, discovered the link between folate intake and spina bifida.
This led to women being advised to increase folate intake before and during
pregnancy and supplementation of some foods with folate.
Sir Gustav Nossal, Australian of
the Year 2000 – Discovered the magic 'one cell-one antibody' rule which led
to the development of effective new therapies for heart disease, breast
cancer and severe arthritis.
Professor Terry Dwyer - Led the
team which proved the link between a baby's sleeping position and Sudden
Infant Death Syndrome. They found that a baby sleeping on its stomach has
ten times the risk of SIDS than babies who sleep in other positions.
Professor Graeme Clark -
Pioneered the multiple-channel cochlear implant which has brought hearing
and speech understanding to tens of thousands of people with
severe-to-profound hearing loss in more than 70 countries.
Professor Judith Whitworth –
Discovered how steroids raise blood pressure. Former Chief Medical Officer
for the Commonwealth Department of Health and Family Services and current
Chair of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Global Advisory Committee on
Health Research.
Professor John Shine – First to
clone a human hormone gene and discovered a gene sequence, the Shine-Dalgarno
sequence, which is important for the control of protein synthesis. Former
Chair of the National Health and Medical Research Council and current member
of the Prime Minister's Science, Engineering & Innovation Council.
Research Australia is a unique
national alliance of more than 180 member and donor organisations with a
common mission to make health and medical research a higher national
priority. For more information on Research Australia visit
http://www.researchaustralia.org/.
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