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
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