5 September Funding boost for research into child blindness September 5, 2018 By Announcement, Research 0 The Federal Government has committed $3 million towards stem cell research that will in part focus on tackling blindness in children. The funding, which has been awarded to the University of Melbourne (UniMelb) and Stem Cells Australia (SCA), will facilitate the use of stem cells to test new ways to save the sight of children with rare genetic defects. Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said the funding would help maintain the continuity and momentum of SCA’s “vital work”. “This cutting edge science offers new ways to repair parts of the body through stem cell therapy. It is possible to build a model of a human eye from a patient’s stem cells and by using this approach researchers will carry out a unique human-based approach to determine whether this treatment is likely to work,” Hunt said. SCA program leader Professor Melissa Little said stem cell science had advanced to the stage where it can now impact future medical treatments. Read More Related Articles Paid research into digital health $5 million for bushfire related health research The Government will provide $5 million in total from the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) under an open and competitive grant round. Department of Human Services: We’d like your insights into how Medicare communication to you can be improved The Department of Human Services is conducting a research project to find out how they can improve their website and Medicare communication to Practice Managers. Major step forward in cancer research Australian scientists have taken a "major step forward" in the world of cancer research with the discovery of a new type of drug that can put cancer cells in animals into a permanent state of sleep. Support for routine childhood immunisation Logged into MyGov to do your tax? Get a healthy start to the new financial year Comments are closed.