Did you know that almost 10,000 Australians die each year from a heart attack? In a recent survey we conducted almost 90% of people have known someone who has suffered a heart attack.

The Cardiology Unit at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital is primarily focused on Heart Disease research. Heart Disease is the leading cause of death in Australia.  Smoking, body weight, cholesterol, blood pressure and exercise are all risk factors.

Read more about what The BHI and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital are doing:

Meet Rachel Dreyer who is looking into heart disease in young women

Meet Colin, living proof of the benefits of medical research

Read more about Heart Disease

Research Interest:

Close to 3,300 men die of prostate cancer each year; it’s about as common in men as breast cancer is in women. I’m interested in how and why prostate cancer spreads to other areas of the body. In my PhD project I’m looking at the area surrounding the prostate which we call the ‘micro-environment’. I’m particularly interested in the role of Androgen (testosterone) in a certain type of cell (fibroblasts) within the prostate micro-environment and the Androgen receptor. When a patient has prostate cancer, we think the role of Androgen within these fibroblasts changes and it becomes an important determinant in the spread of prostate cancer.

How will patients eventually benefit from your research?

One of the important things I have found so far through my PhD is that if patients with prostate cancer have a low amount of the Androgen receptor in their fibroblasts they are more likely to die from prostate cancer. This leads us to believe the effect of Androgen in these cells prevents the progression of prostate cancer and stops it spreading.

So if we can develop a test to identify patients with low levels of Androgen receptor, we can therefore identify which patients are more likely to have prostate cancer spread. This will inform treatment; we’ll know which patients to treat with aggressive treatment right from the start, and those who don’t need such an aggressive approach. Treatment is rigorous, so ideally we only want to put people through it if necessary.

How long have you been working on your PhD?

I started my PhD when my team was at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in 2010. We moved over to the Basil Hetzel Institute in June last year. I have really enjoyed coming to the BHI – the labs are so well laid out and new. It allows for easy collaboration which I’ve found really assists my work and that of my team.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

I really enjoy working in the lab – I always liked Biology at school. A number of my family members have had different types of cancer, but it’s not a big driver of my work. I think it’s important to keep things separate.

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A story of how adversity prompted support of TQEH

You could say that Eric and Elizabeth have been through their fair share of adversity. They have experienced the highest and lowest levels of the emotional spectrum- extreme pain, but also the kind of happiness that can only be appreciated after serious hardship. These experiences are what prompted them to become Life Guardians of The  Hospital Research Foundation.

In 2004, they experienced the loss of their beloved grandson, Sean. At age 10, Sean was a bright, diplomatic, daring young boy and when the opportunity for adventure arose, Sean was always keen.

The Rossi’s share with us the story of Sean’s death…

“Stephanie, my daughter and her husband Tony had just picked up Sean from the airport” recounts Eric.

Uki, the country town in New South Wales where they live, had experienced very stormy conditions over the past few days and heavy rain. When they arrived at their property, the concrete bridge crossing the creek on the way to the house was under water, flooded to ankle depth.

“Sean was in such high spirits to be home, and he needed to let off some steam,” said Elisabeth.

“The three of them attached each other together with rope, and decided as a bit of an adventure, they would walk across the bridge up to the house and leave the car there. But about 20 metres into crossing the bridge, a wall of water came at them and engulfed them all.”

“Tony got pinned with his back against a barbed wire fence, and Stephanie was flung over the other side of the fence. As Sean was in the middle, the water pushed him against the fence, and his feet were wedged between the bottom two rungs of the barbed wire and the ground. As the water got higher and higher in waves, eventually Sean couldn’t keep his head above the water line. Steph just didn’t have the strength to pull him above the water,” he said.

“And he drowned.”

Rescue teams didn’t find Sean’s body until the following morning and by then it was too late to revive him.

At the end of 2004, Stephanie and her husband started trying to get pregnant via IVF.

They tried courses of IVF treatment one after another, every time receiving no positive results and huge levels of disappointment.

“We had watched this cycle of heartbreak for Stephanie and Tony over and over again. When we got a call from The Queen Elizabeth Hospital Research Foundation we just felt that in light of everything we needed to do something positive,” said Eric.

“Obviously a lot of research goes in to IVF treatment. We also thought about the possibility that Shaun hadn’t died in the accident, but instead had brain damage or had been severely paralysed,” said Elisabeth.

“We would like to think that there is research to help kids like that, because he was such an outgoing, bright lad, it would have been devastating to see him live in pain,” she said.

“Also, when something like that happens you get a sense of perspective and you realise how much you have taken for granted before,” said Eric.

“When life is going well for you, you grieve with people when they experience their own tragedies, but you always think to yourself ‘that’s never going to happen to me’.”

There is a happy ending for the Rossi’s however, as they now have a beautiful baby granddaughter, Gabriella, after Stephanie and Tony were successful in getting pregnant via a donor sperm.

When Eric & Elisabeth speak of their granddaughter they beam with happiness, just like they do when they recall all the fond memories they have of Sean.

“When we look back over our journey we think about all that we’ve been through, but wow, look what we have now in our beautiful granddaughter,” said Eric.

“There are probably a lot of people out there with similar kinds of experiences and I’m sure they can agree that it really makes you think about your priorities,” he said.

“It has completely changed how we look at things, and our contribution as Life Guardians to The Queen Elizabeth Hospital Research Foundation is our way of doing something positive to help others in the light of what we have been through,” he said.

Joan on her daily beach walk with Henry and Wally.

Eighty-one-year-old Joan has no memory of what it feels like to breathe normally; she has been suffering from severe asthma since she was two-years-old.

At her home in Largs Bay, Joan rests outside in her garden surrounded by her two constant companions, terriers Henry and Wally, and lets us in on her life living with this debilitating illness.

“Mum said I was a perfectly healthy baby up until I was two when I got whooping cough,” said Joan.

“Eighty years ago they had no medication for whooping cough and after that I continually came down with bronchitis. Eventually the bronchitis turned into asthma.”

Joan’s asthma slightly improved throughout her teens but for most of her life it has been so severe that she constantly has trouble breathing.

After growing up in Geelong, Joan came to South Australia in her 20’s when her husband got a job in one of Renmark’s fruit factories.

“Small things would set my asthma off, like if I drove past a place that was cutting apricots where they used trays of burning sulphur to dry them out, the air would really affect me.”

About 44 years ago, Joan and her husband moved to Adelaide’s inner suburbs. Having three young daughters, Sheree, Leonie & Mary-Ann; if any of them ever had a cold, Joan would immediately catch it and go straight to hospital.

“I have no idea how many times I’ve been to hospital in my life, back then I was in about 3 or 4 times a year if my asthma flared up.”

“It was incredibly hard, I had these little kids to look after and if I was sick I could barely put one foot in front of the other.”

Joan’s slight relief from her asthma came only when she began visiting The Queen Elizabeth Hospital. She saw two or three doctors however her closest relationship has been with Dr Richard Ruffin, who she has known for over 20 years.

Joan was the very first respiratory patient at TQEH and her treatment there started up the Respiratory Unit. Joan grew quite close to Dr Ruffin and supported him and the clinic in any way she could.

“I enjoyed playing bowls for many years and whenever I won some money I’d give it to Dr Ruffin, even though it was just $20 a lot of the time,” she said.

“When we went away to play we’d all go in one car and give the driver some money for petrol. The driver wouldn’t take the money so instead she bought lotto tickets and one day, we hit the jackpot! It wasn’t the huge jackpot but we all got over $100 dollars.”

“I didn’t think it was fair to take the money- it was her ticket and I had just paid for my ride. However, she insisted so I gave my share to Dr Ruffin.”

Joan now sees Dr Ruffin four times a year, an increase from the two times a year she previously visited.

“A year ago he told me that I had just 40% of my lungs working, but now because of how my condition has deteriorated, I know it would be much less.”

As a way of continuing her support for TQEH, Joan has chosen to be a Life Guardian for research.

“Its no fun being like I am,  I can’t go anywhere without my Ventilator which has a 10 metre long cord. It gets tangled up; ill be walking along and I get yanked back when it gets caught on something.”

“But I really have kept quite well. Up until not long ago I would leave home at 5 o’clock in the morning to walk down to the beach, which is a decent walk from home! Eventually I decided to start driving the car down and now I just walk along the beach with the dogs.”

Joan thanks Dr Ruffin and the Respiratory Unit for keeping her as well as they could have and she is optimistic that the research she is helping through her bequest will mean much better treatments for asthma sufferers.

“It’s an effort for me to do anything, its even a struggle to talk these days, so I hope that my bequest will mean a more comfortable, healthier life for people like me in the future.”

Name: Kanchani Rajopadhyaya

What is the background of your research?

My research involves the study of how blood vessels contract and relax in the peripheral circulation- the arms and legs. Patients suffering from peripheral vascular disease have blockages of the blood vessels in the legs and less commonly in the arms. This causes significant pain at rest or with mild to moderate exercise, including simple activities like walking and climbing stairs.

Peripheral vascular disease is common, affecting approximately 20% of people over the age of 70. Pain caused by peripheral vascular disease is often first identified when individuals undertake moderate exercise but as the disease develops, leg pain can occur at rest. As the disorder progresses, pain associated with peripheral vascular disease limits walking, sleeping and participation in basic daily activities. For example one patient told me his pain was so severe he couldn’t walk to the letterbox to get his mail. Another patient called from the hospital parking lot saying he would have to cancel his appointment because he couldn’t walk the few metres into the clinic. In severe cases, patients develop ulcers, which can become infected. In some cases amputation of the affected limb is required.

What does your research involve?

There are three main causes of peripheral vascular disease, 1) plaque build up in blood vessels, which leads to physical blockage, 2) blood clots and 3) vasospasm. I’m looking at the third cause, vasospasm, which occurs when blood vessels rapidly narrow, causing a reduction in blood flow. The vascular team at TQEH do a wonderful job in managing large vessel blockages and clots with bypass grafts and stents. However these interventions are not possible for smaller blood vessels undergoing vasospasm and medical treatment is limited. Individuals who suffer from some peripheral vascular disease often develop infections, peripheral ulcers and gangrene on their legs, which may result in amputation. Some patients actually welcome this option as it means relief from their severe pain. It’s really unfortunate that currently there are few medical options for these patients. As a young researcher I wanted to contribute new research that provided new treatment options to enhance blood flow in small vessels.

How will patients directly benefit from your research?

By identifying the cause of vasospasm-related peripheral vascular disease, we will be able to develop new therapies for patients to reduce their leg pain and ultimately reduce the need for amputations.

Why did you decide to study/work at TQEH/the BHI?

My vascular project has a lab-based perspective, but also a clinical aspect where I can work with patients. Being at the BHI I have the opportunity to work with and learn from scientists (in the labs) as well as physicians (in the hospital). My favourite and most fulfilling part of this work is the interaction with patients, although most of them are often very unwell and need a lot of medical care, I know what I’m doing will help them.

High blood pressurecan increase the risk of a heart attack, strokes and kidney failure. It may also lead to heart failure and other serious outcomes if left uncontrolled. One in three adults worldwide has high blood pressure.

High blood pressure is preventable and treatable. While it can be hereditary, you can reduce your risk of developing high blood pressure by:

• Reducing your salt intake
• Eating a balanced diet
• Exercising regularly
• Maintaining a healthy body weight
• Quitting smoking
• Reducing alcohol intake

Please read more about the side effects of high blood pressure and how The Hospital Research Foundation and BHI are involved:

Heart disease

Healthy eating

If you’re interested on learning more about strokes and their risks come along to our tour:

Research Presentation and Tour- Stroke

Visit the World Health Day website here: http://www.who.int/world-health-day/en/

After training in Cape Town, South Africa, Professor Peter John Wormald came to Adelaide in 1997 to take up the chair position of the Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) Department at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital.His employment created the ENT department at TQEH and thirteen years later the department is world renowned for its significant developments in Ear, Nose and Throat research and surgery.

“There was a significant gap in research in Australia in rhinology (the study of the nose) when I arrived here which really surprised me as chronic rhinosinusitis affects about 18% of the Australian population making it a very common disease,” said Professor Wormald.

“Not only is it common but extremely debilitating, and various quality of life questionnaires have shown that chronic rhinosinitus has a greater negative impact on quality of life than rheumatoid arthritis and cardiac disease,” he said.

It is simple to see how sufferers of this disease would have a severely debilitated lifestyle. People suffering from chronic rhinosinitus often experience symptoms including nasal obstruction which causes difficulty breathing, pain and swelling around their eyes and nose, a reduced sense of smell and taste and can often have a chronic cough.

Australia and particularly Adelaide has a very bad climate for chronic rhinosinitus, as the hotter and dryer the climate the more prevalent the disease is due to the high fungal spore counts.

Professor Wormald is leading his team in a number of areas looking at the causes of chronic rhinosinitus, as well as improving healing of the sinuses after surgery; an area where they have achieved outstanding results.

“A treatment for chronic rhinosinitus is to undergo sinus surgery, after which most patients heal fine, however some heal very badly and get a recurrence of the disease,” said Professor Wormald.

“To improve healing in these patients, we have been working in combination with two groups in New Zealand to develop a very innovative gel made from squid pens or crab shells called Chitosan. We have shown that it effectively prevents scar tissue from forming after surgery which is the major cause of poor healing.”

Not only can Chitosan be used to prevent adhesion formation, but it is effective at keeping the sinuses open and preventing significant bleeding.

“Previously after surgery we would have to uncomfortably pack the patient’s nose to stop bleeding, where as now we can just spray the Chitosan and it prevents it effectively,” said Professor Wormald.

“We are happy to have developed something that really improves patients’ comfort- it is a fantastic achievement for us.”

Professor Wormald and his team are also one of few centres in the world practicing ‘transnasal intracranial surgery’, where brain tumours are removed through the nose without the need to crack open the skull.

“If you open the skull there are many problems with brain retraction which is required to get to the site of the tumour, and patients can end up with all sorts of side effects including epilepsy,” said Professor Wormald.

“By accessing the tumour directly through the nose we avoid these side effects- it is much safer for patients and there is no scarring,” he said.

Surgeons from all over the world come to Adelaide to learn how to undertake this surgery which requires extensive expertise. Adelaide’s ‘The Advertiser’ recently covered Professor Wormald’s involvement in teaching this surgery to visiting international surgeons (see article inset).

Due to their outstanding success, TQEH’s ENT department is regarded as one of the top five centres in the world undertaking Ear, Nose and Throat research and surgery.

“I was the first appointment to the chair of the department in 1997, with no infrastructure. Now we have 7 PhD students, 3 full time scientists, a master of surgery student, registrars, overseas fellows and about 4 overseas visiting surgeons at any one time who spend time in our department observing and learning these new techniques,” he said

“We have a magnificent team working together to undertake work of outstanding calibre that is improving the lives of our community here in Australia, and all over the world.”

“We feel privileged to be able to contribute to the cutting edge of health care delivery in Australia,” he said.

Jacky with daughter Gemma at their home in Henley Beach.

Jacqueline (“Jacky”) will never forget Melbourne Cup Day 2006. That was the day she was diagnosed with breast cancer at The Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s (TQEH’s) Breast Clinic.

Ironically, at the time, her only daughter, Gemma, was in Japan working as a breast cancer researcher.

“Earlier, our daughter had chosen a breast cancer topic for her Honours Year. In subsequent years, the subject became a part of our family life as I acted as proof reader for her research proposals and other projects,” said Jacky.

“Terms such as “mammosphere” and “estrogen receptor” became familiar to me in an academic and impersonal sense. Never, did I imagine though, that they would ever take on a real and personal relevance for me,” she said.

“Gemma was in Japan when I was diagnosed, but we did not tell her the news till she returned home a few weeks later. The irony of the situation was not lost on any of us. Our daughter, unwittingly, had been studying the very disease that her mother had now developed.”

This ‘irony’ however, became a blessing, as Jacky had her own personal source for the latest research and findings close at hand. Jacky admitted, “No matter how illogical or weird my cancer questions were, Gemma came up with answers that were reassuring and comforting.”

Jacky’s G.P. did not hesitate in referring her to TQEH’s Breast Clinic for very prompt attention (the next day) and an immediate and accurate diagnosis.

“95% of lumps found in the breast are benign, so I felt the odds were definitely in my favour,” said Jacky.

Despite this comforting thought, the attending doctor told her the lump was cancerous, quite large and aggressive in grade.

Even though the diagnosis at TQEH’s Breast Clinic was devastating, Jacky clung to the encouraging and positive comments and advice given by the clinic staff over the next few, uncertain weeks.

“When you are diagnosed, you are initiated into a well oiled system of care that takes you under its wing. TQEH’s Breast Clinic became the first link in what proved to be a long chain of treatment; surgery, then six months of chemotherapy and six weeks of radiotherapy revealed to me the resilience and unfailing good humour of fellow cancer patients, their families and the treating medical staff. Staff became friends. On my birthday, while under-going a ray treatment session, the staff piped in the tune “Happy Birthday to You”. I was very touched by that gesture,” she remembered.

Jacky’s decision to become a Life Guardian of The Hospital Research Foundation was greatly influenced by her daughter’s choice of cancer as a medical researcher.

“Several years before I was diagnosed, I had agreed to leave a bequest to The Hospital Research Foundation. I remember thinking at the time that people like my daughter needed the support of people like me so that they could continue their life-saving research. I had no idea, at that time though, that my donation gesture would have such personal relevance. Subsequent events have made me even more certain that the decision was definitely right for me.”

The incidence of breast cancer in the Western World is one in eight or nine (primarily women) and seems to be on the increase as life expectancy rises.

“It is therefore justifiable that much money and attention is given to this particular type of cancer. Nevertheless, it is to the lower profile cancers, such as stomach cancer, which claimed my mother at the age of 44, along with brain, pancreatic and ovarian cancers that I would like my bequest to be directed!,” she said

“It’s incredibly important that medical research into cancer and other illnesses be well supported by as many of us as possible, for it is certain that every one of us will be touched by them in some way. By donating money, no matter how small the amount, we can make a significant difference. As with me, you may end up helping yourself”, Jacky concluded.