In a year marked by significant advancements in health and medicine, the Hunter Medical Research Institute recently gathered to celebrate the individuals and teams whose pioneering work is shaping the future of healthcare at the 2025 HMRI Research Excellence Awards. The prestigious annual gala, held at the historic Newcastle City Hall, served as a powerful testament to the vibrant and dedicated research community focused on improving health outcomes not only for the local Hunter and New England regions but for populations worldwide. This event brought together a distinguished audience of researchers, clinicians, collaborators, and key community supporters, all united by a shared commitment to fostering innovation and accelerating the translation of scientific discoveries from the laboratory to the patient’s bedside. The ceremony underscored the institute’s core mission: to drive progress in medical research through dedication, collaboration, and an unwavering focus on creating tangible clinical impact that addresses the most pressing health challenges of our time.
Forging the Future Through Vision and Collaboration
A central theme woven throughout the evening was the relentless pursuit of knowledge to overcome contemporary health crises, a message articulated with passion by HMRI Institute Director and CEO, Professor Frances Kay. In her address, Professor Kay extended her sincere congratulations to all the finalists and awardees, emphasizing their exceptional leadership and unwavering dedication to their respective fields. She highlighted that these remarkable individuals and teams consistently “push the boundaries of knowledge to address some of the most significant health challenges of our time.” The awards ceremony was presented as a crucial opportunity to formally recognize the immense dedication, countless hours of work, and intellectual rigor that underpin every study, innovation, and breakthrough that emerges from the institute. This acknowledgment serves not only to honor past achievements but also to inspire a new generation of researchers to continue this vital work, ensuring a sustained pipeline of medical progress for years to come.
Furthermore, Professor Kay stressed that collaboration stands as the foundational pillar upon which the institute’s success is built. She identified HMRI’s synergistic partnerships with esteemed institutions like the University of Newcastle and the Hunter New England Local Health District as the cornerstone of its operational and scientific achievements. This tightly integrated collaborative ecosystem, she noted, is absolutely essential to everything the institute accomplishes, from fundamental research to large-scale clinical trials. In her remarks, she also extended profound gratitude to the broader community and the many philanthropic supporters whose financial contributions are the lifeblood that allows researchers to “turn ideas into impact.” These vital funds provide the necessary resources to transform promising, early-stage concepts into fully developed, life-changing medical realities, demonstrating a powerful partnership between scientific ingenuity and community investment.
A Showcase of Groundbreaking Achievements
The evening’s top honor, the HMRI Award for Research Excellence, was bestowed upon Professor Joshua Davis of the Hunter New England Local Health District and the University of Newcastle. As a globally recognized infectious diseases clinician-researcher within HMRI’s Infection Research Program, Professor Davis has fundamentally transformed the evidence base for managing severe and life-threatening infections. His extraordinary leadership in designing and executing high-impact, pragmatic clinical trials has directly reshaped international treatment guidelines, altering the standard of care for patients around the world. His extensive body of work, which includes over 15 randomized trials, more than 240 peer-reviewed publications, and an impressive 14,800 citations, is backed by over $51 million in competitive funding. He is particularly celebrated for his landmark CAMERA trials, which have altered the clinical management of Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections, and for leading the world-first SNAP adaptive platform trial, now the largest randomized controlled trial ever conducted for this common yet dangerous disease, with patient recruitment spanning 11 countries.
Recognition for world-leading research continued with the Director’s Award for Mid-Career Research, presented to Associate Professor Myles Young from the University of Newcastle and HMRI’s Active Living and Learning Research Program. His work directly confronts Australia’s “silent crisis” in men’s well-being, where suicide tragically remains the leading cause of death for men aged 18 to 44. Professor Young’s approach is distinguished by its innovation, as he creates gender-tailored programs specifically designed to overcome traditional barriers and help men engage more effectively with mental health support. Meanwhile, the HMRI Award for Early Career Research was given to Dr. Emily Cox, a Lecturer in Clinical Exercise Physiology at the University of Newcastle. Dr. Cox has rapidly established herself as a national leader in the field of exercise and metabolic health. Her research is transforming the way exercise is prescribed for individuals living with complex metabolic diseases, generating high-quality evidence that is now integrated into major clinical guidelines worldwide.
Innovations in Cancer Care and Team-Based Discovery
Highlighting the critical role of innovation in translating research into practical solutions, the Newcastle Permanent Emerging Innovator Award was presented to Dr. Nikitas Koussis, a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Newcastle. Dr. Koussis is the visionary creator of OncoMind, a cutting-edge digital platform poised to revolutionize the monitoring and management of brain cancer. OncoMind addresses a critical gap in patient care by seamlessly integrating real-time data from wearables and patient diaries with advanced imaging and sophisticated AI analytics. This system allows for the early detection of subtle changes in a patient’s health between clinical visits, enabling timely interventions and more personalized care pathways. In another testament to collaborative success, the HMRI Research Team Excellence Award was bestowed upon the Cancer Signalling Research Group, led by University of Newcastle Professor Matt Dun. This team is recognized for its transformative work in improving outcomes for children diagnosed with devastating cancers like leukaemia and diffuse midline glioma (DMG), which is the leading cause of cancer-related death in young Australians.
The impact of these pioneering efforts was clearly demonstrated by their tangible clinical outcomes. Dr. Koussis’s OncoMind platform, which has already attracted strong industry interest following a successful early prototype, has the potential to transform brain cancer treatment, reduce hospital readmissions, and significantly enhance patients’ quality of life by empowering them and their clinical teams with actionable data. Similarly, the Cancer Signalling Research Group’s work has yielded remarkable results in just eight years. Their translational research has led to two FDA Rare Paediatric Disease Designations, a full FDA approval for a new therapy, and the establishment of an Australian Expanded Access Program. This program provides families with access to life-extending therapies that were previously unavailable, offering new hope in the face of a devastating diagnosis. The team’s success, built on a foundation of collaboration, innovation, and strong community partnerships, has redefined the clinical options available for pediatric brain cancer on a global scale.
A Legacy of Impact and a Vision for Tomorrow
The 2025 HMRI Research Excellence Awards ceremony ultimately stood as more than just a celebration of individual and team accomplishments; it was a powerful affirmation of the collective spirit driving medical progress. The honored projects and the researchers behind them provided a clear and inspiring vision for the future of healthcare, where data-driven innovations, patient-centered approaches, and deep collaboration converge to solve complex health problems. The evening’s proceedings underscored a fundamental truth: that groundbreaking discoveries are born from a supportive ecosystem that nurtures curiosity, rewards perseverance, and connects scientific inquiry with real-world clinical needs. The achievements recognized at the gala represented the culmination of years of dedicated work and served as a benchmark for excellence, setting a new standard for translational research and its potential to deliver life-altering outcomes for patients and their families. This event cemented a legacy of impact and charted a course for continued innovation in the years ahead.
