Boost to Melanoma Services in the Riverina
12 December 2019
Melanoma patients and their families throughout the Riverina region will benefit from strengthened and sustained melanoma services with the merger of the Amie St Clair Melanoma Trust and Melanoma Institute Australia..
The merger was announced at the 10th Anniversary Celebrations for the Amie St Clair Melanoma Trust, which was formed by Annette and Peter St Clair in memory of their daughter Amie who passed away from melanoma when she was just 23 years old.
It will provide immediate benefits by doubling the level of services provided to melanoma patients in the Riverina, including:
- Increased capacity of the free melanoma nursing services;
- The establishment of clinical trials in Wagga Wagga;
- Opportunities for melanoma patients within the region to contribute to MIA research;
- Melanoma Education opportunities – both professional (GPs/Clinics) and community-based through the SunSafe Student Ambassador program.
The merged entity will retain its local office presence in Wagga Wagga, as well as the dedicated service of both Annette and Peter St Clair. Importantly, the legacy of Amie St Clair will be maintained.
Annette St Clair said she is excited by the opportunities created through MIA. ‘Pete and I just can’t believe we will have clinical trials established here and we are really excited that MIA is using the Amie St Clair Trust model as the framework to increase services in other parts of regional Australia,'
‘Our wonderful volunteers have worked so hard to build the Amie St Clair Melanoma Trust over the last 10 years, and this partnership with MIA will significantly increase melanoma services for the next 10 years.’
Melanoma Institute Australia CEO Matthew Browne attended the 10th Anniversary Celebrations and paid tribute to the tireless work of Annette and Peter St Clair, plus the all the volunteers, in raising awareness of melanoma and supporting local patients and their families.
‘We love what the Amie St Clair Melanoma Trust has been doing and together we have built a strong relationship over the past few years,’ Mr Browne said. ‘Our shared vision is zero deaths from melanoma, no matter where you live, and this is a fantastic opportunity to enhance the effective delivery of treatment and support services to melanoma patients in this region.
‘We can then go to Government with a proven collaborative model and hopefully extend melanoma support services to other regional centres as well.’
The newly merged entity will be officially launched at an event in Wagga on 27 February 2020 and its first major fundraising event will be Melanoma March Wagga on 15 March at Apex Park.
Pictured in photo: Annette St Clair and Moo, from Amie St Clair Melanoma Trust
New Test to Predict Primary Melanoma Progression
Australian researchers have played a critical role in the discovery of a potential new test to predict which early stage melanoma patients are at high risk of their disease recurring and progressing.
Community Fundraising December Wrap-Up
We are extremely grateful for our community fundraisers, who, even in this difficult time, have given up their time and effort to fundraise so we can continue to work towards our goal of zero deaths from melanoma.
Two melanoma treatments approved for PBS listing
Melanoma patients are set to benefit from subsidised access to immunotherapy treatment for high risk early-stage and advanced-stage melanoma patients.
Immunotherapy: the decade's biggest health advance
An informative article on how immunotherapy is revolutionising cancer treatment, written by Jill Margo and featured in the Australian Financial Review.
Boost to Melanoma Services in the Riverina
Melanoma patients and their families in the Riverina will benefit from strengthened and sustained melanoma services with the merger of the Amie St Clair Melanoma Trust and Melanoma Institute Australia.
Winner of the SunSafe Student Ambassador Program announced
Belmont High School at Lake Macquarie has been announced winner of the 2019 SunSafe Student Ambassador Program video competition.
Community Fundraising November Wrap-Up
It’s time again to say thank you to our amazing community fundraisers!
MIA & MPA Patient Information Evening videos now available
Videos of the sessions at the recent Patient Information Evening co-hosted by Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA) and Melanoma Patients Australia (MPA) are now available for viewing.
MIA shines in poster session
MIA is well-represented in the poster sessions at the Society for Melanoma Research 2019 Congress in the USA, with four poster presentations being given by members of our translational research lab.
MIA Co-Medical Director opens SMR Congress in USA
Professor Georgina Long has today opened the Society for Melanoma Research 2019 Congress in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Highly Cited Researchers List names MIA Co-Medical Directors
MIA’s Co-Medical Directors, Professor Georgina Long and Professor Richard Scolyer, have both been named Highly Cited Researchers, according to the Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researchers 2019 list.
MPA and MIA collaboration
Melanoma Patients Australia (MPA) and Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA) have announced a new multi-year agreement to provide enhanced support services for melanoma patients nationally.
Community Fundraising October Wrap-Up
It is time again to say thank you to our incredible community fundraisers who are helping us get closer to our goal of zero deaths from melanoma.
Promising data for advanced melanoma patients
MIA has presented promising data regarding progression-free survival rates for advanced melanoma patients at the ESMO 2019 Congress in Barcelona.
Melanoma Information Forum
We
Community Fundraising September Wrap-Up
Another month has flown by and yet again we have a host of amazing community fundraisers who generously gave up their time to help us reach our goal of zero deaths from melanoma.
Notice for Supporters to Submit to PBAC
Comments in favour of giving patients with BRAF-positive melanoma access to first-line immunotherapy need to be submitted online prior to October 9, 2019.
Tune into Jay's Longest Melanoma March Channel 10 documentary
Jay's Longest Melanoma March documentary is screening this Sunday 22 September at 1pm (AEST) on Channel 10, capturing behind the scenes of the 2000km walk, Adelaide to Sydney in 50 days. Uniting to end melanoma.
Professor Georgina Long Co -Medical Director named Women of Influence in AFR Top 100 List
We are proud to announce that our Professor Georgina
Community Fundraising August Wrap-Up
It’s been a month since we highlighted some of our incredibly generous community fundraisers. We thought we’d have a look back at August and put the spotlight on more of the wonderful people who give up their time to fundraise for MIA, so we can continue to edge closer to our goal of zero deaths from melanoma.