Precision Health

World of genomics moving into mainstream

Experts call for DNA screening

16 January 2026

The groundswell towards greater use of genomic testing gathered momentum today when Monash University experts issued a call to action to save thousands of Australians from conditions like cancer and heart disease. Monash says publicly funded DNA testing is currently only available to a limited group of Australians and strict eligibility criteria excludes “those who […]

GigaTIME: AI meets clinical data

10 December 2025

GigaTIME, a new AI-powered pathology model, can analyse tumour microenvironments to help reveal how individual immune cells interact with tumours. A recent joint study from Providence Genomics, Microsoft Research and the University of Washington revealed the breakthrough that can potentially unlock improved treatment response for millions of patients who receive targeted immunotherapies for cancer. The […]

Embed genomics into everyday practice, urges Omico

25 November 2025

Australian not-for-profit leader in precision oncology Omico today released an impact report showing how genomic profiling and biomarker-matched therapies are reshaping cancer care for patients with advanced and incurable disease. Impact Report: From Momentum to Mainstream says access to precision oncology in Australia remains inequitable and is not yet part of mainstream care. “Only a […]

UNSW $600m hub to enable translational health at scale

25 November 2025

The UNSW Health Translation Hub, a $600 million integrated medical, research and health innovation centre, has been officially opened by NSW Premier Chris Minns. The hub marks a major milestone in the state government’s $1.5 billion Randwick Campus Redevelopment – one of the largest health infrastructure projects in NSW. The hub will connect pioneering research […]

AI-powered imaging has potential for personalised melanoma care

24 November 2025

Australian researchers have developed a new AI-powered imaging method that could help doctors better predict how melanoma patients will respond to immunotherapy. The research team, led by Dr Priyanka Rana and Dr Sidong Liu from Macquarie University’s Australian Institute of Health Innovation, worked closely with Melanoma Institute Australia. Their study was published in the IEEE […]

HealthScreen opens in Sydney

18 November 2025

Preventative health company HealthScreen has officially launched in Sydney, building on the success of its Melbourne centre offering advanced precision health diagnostics. HealthScreen uses a combination of AI-assisted MRI screening sequences, genetic testing, and a comprehensive panel of 100+ biomarkers across more than 50 medical categories. It offers clients the ability to detect early indicators of more than 1,000 […]

Singapore advances large-scale precision health programme

18 November 2025

Precision Health Research Singapore (PRECISE) has launched Phase III of the National Precision Medicine (NPM) programme with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between PRECISE and senior representatives from NHG Health, National University Health System (NUHS) and SingHealth. NPM Phase III will be conducted as a large-scale research initiative to generate “robust, population-specific […]

An eye for early disease detection

7 November 2025

A new research initiative will use artificial intelligence (AI) and retinal imaging as a “window to whole-body health”. The project is led by the Digital Health Cooperative Research Centre (DHCRC), with Monash University and Optain Health. Researchers will develop a foundational AI model capable of detecting a wide range of systemic diseases – including cardiovascular […]

New model a breakthrough in rare disease management

29 October 2025

A world-first AI-powered disease progression model for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) is a milestone in the application of digital health technologies for rare disease management and precision medicine. The model has been developed through a collaboration between Swinburne University of Technology, the FSHD Global Research Foundation, the National Imaging Facility (NIF) and Springbok Analytics. It […]

TMRW appoints Tony Faure Chair

28 October 2025

TMRW, an Australian company pioneering personalised, preventative health systems, today announced the appointment of Tony Faure as Chair. Mr Faure was one of the earliest employees at Yahoo! globally, later serving as CEO of ninemsn, and an early investor in category-defining businesses and SEEK. He is currently Chair of ASX-listed ReadyTech and oOh!media, as well as privately-held Lawpath, […]

PredicTx Health secures $1.6m to advance chemo dosing

23 October 2025

University of Melbourne spin-out PredicTx Health has secured a $1.6 million pre-seed investment aimed at supporting commercialisation of a world-first precision oncology platform for personalised chemotherapy dosing, using CT imaging and machine learning. The funding has come from the University’s Genesis Pre-Seed Fund, along with government grants, angel investment and support from Western Health. PredicTx […]

Melanoma risk predicted by upgraded online calculator

21 October 2025

QIMR Berghofer has unveiled the next-generation of its world-leading melanoma risk prediction calculator. The free online tool was first launched seven years ago, developed using a decade of data from more than 40,000 participants in the landmark QSkin Study, and has undergone a major upgrade to now include 16 self-reported factors, such as age, skin type, hair […]

ProCan wins AI-F1 challenge

15 October 2025

The Proteome of Cancer (ProCan®) program, based at Children’s Medical Research Institute, Sydney, is the winner of the AI-F1 National Innovation Challenge. Australian technology leader ResetData, backed by ASX-listed Centuria Capital Group, made the announcement today at the NVIDIA AI Day at the Sydney SXSW Festival. The ProCan program is pioneering the use of […]

Awanui launches next-gen lab test results platform

30 September 2025

New Zealand pathology group Awanui has launched BODYiQ, an online platform offering self-requested testing services and digital reporting aimed at making health data easier to understand. Awanui chief commercial officer Scott Bishop said BODYiQ was the evolution of Awanui’s previous self-request test service, MyTests, and reflected the growing global movement towards personal ownership of health. […]

Bupa offers genomic tests for medication profiling

24 September 2025

Bupa is partnering with myDNA to offer health insurance customers pharmacogenomic testing through Blua, Bupa’s digital health platform, and at Bupa’s medical centres. The general public will also be able to access the test through Blua at a discounted rate. The test will help people to understand how their individual genetic profile may affect their […]

Innovation in dementia care

19 September 2025

The World Alzheimer’s Report 2025 released in the lead up to World Alzheimer’s Day yesterday (September 21) has a list of recommendations including embracing rehabilitation as part of ‘precision care’. It says recent scientific innovations, such as blood-based biomarkers, have enabled the dementia community to focus more on precision medicine and personalised care. “The new […]

Genomics Australia calls for expert advisors

8 September 2025

Nominations are sought for membership of the Genomics Australia Advisory Council with applications closing on Friday October 3, 2025. The council will support the Australian Health Genomics Commissioner Tiffany Boughtwood by providing “independent advice, grounded in evidence, culturally safe practices, and reflecting community values”. Applicants need to have expertise in one or more of the following, […]

Govt gives a $50m funding boost for genomics research

6 August 2025

The Government is accelerating genomics research with $50 million in grants for 30 projects supported by the Genomics Health Futures Mission under the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF). The supported projects aim to create better health outcomes tailored to the individual for a wide range of health issues including children with type 1 diabetes, Australians […]

Flinders researchers awarded $4.1m for genomics projects

5 August 2025

Researchers from Flinders Health and Medical Research Institute (FHMRI) have been awarded a total of $4.1 million in funding from the Government’s Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) to support three genomics-centred research projects. The projects span medication safety and reduction of related hospitalisations; protecting mothers and babies from severe infections; and improving accessibility to genetic […]

Sabina Read joins health startup

23 July 2025

Preventive healthcare startup TMRW has appointed psychologist and media voice Sabina Read as its Resident Psychologist. Sabina Read is the long-standing Resident Psychologist on Melbourne’s top-rating Radio 3AW, co-host of the Human Cogs podcast, and expert host of The Separation Guide podcast. She is also a Board Member of The Reach Foundation and a mentor […]

AI-driven blood tests could detect cancer

16 July 2025

UNSW Sydney scientists are working to develop Australia’s first commercialised lipid-based blood test for breast cancer detection powered by artificial intelligence (AI), with a version of it already being used in clinics. Associate Professor Fatemeh Vafaee and her team at the Vafaee Lab envision developing AI-enabled blood testing platforms to detect and monitor a range of cancers […]

Medibank to cover DNA test to support precision health

10 July 2025

Medibank announced today it would be the first Australian health insurer to pay towards pharmacogenetic testing (PGx) for eligible customers. PGx testing is a DNA test that can help to identify how a person’s unique genetic makeup may affect their response to medication. It aims to personalise prescription medication for better efficacy and safety. It can […]

New leader and a genomics policy framework out for consultation

4 July 2025

Sector leader Tiffany Boughtwood has been appointed Australian Health Genomics Commissioner following the launch of Genomics Australia this week. Genomics Australia commenced operations on July 1, a week after the government released the draft National Health Genomics Policy Framework and Implementation Plan 2026 – 2030 for consultation with feedback closing on July 25. The vision […]

Preview Health first Australian startup to complete PharmStars accelerator

3 July 2025

Digital health startup Preview Health – founded by Dr Diana Zhang and Anastasia Latin – has successfully completed the US-based PharmStars accelerator program, the first Australian startup to do so. Sydney-based Preview Health completed PharmaU, PharmStars’ 10-week educational and mentoring program in May this year. Preview Health’s proprietary AI platform analyses 100 per cent of […]

RMIT medtech invention goes to market

3 July 2025

An ingestible gas-sensing capsule invented at RMIT to provide real-time insights into gut health has been cleared for use in the United States. The Atmo Gas Capsule – which helps diagnose gut disorders from gases it measures while travelling through the digestive system – has just received regulatory clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. […]

Tech upgrade boosts single-cell sequencing in Australia

18 June 2025

The South Australian Genomics Centre (SAGC), with its main node based at South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, is staking its claim as a world-class single-cell profiling hub by becoming the first certified service provider in the Asia-Pacific for Parse Bioscience’s Evercode technology. Evercode allows researchers to analyse gene expression from millions of individual cells […]

AI will help deliver equitable maternal care

16 June 2025

The Digital Health Cooperative Research Centre (DHCRC) has announced a collaborative research project with ASX-listed HeraMED and RMIT University focused on improving maternal health outcomes for culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) women through AI-enabled predictive care. Under the project, AI models to assess the risk of pre-term delivery linked to socio-economic factors, HeraMED’s proprietary HeraCARE […]

Hospital genomics initiative tackles dangerous superbug

5 June 2025

Australian researchers are using real-time genome sequencing in routine hospital care for patients with severe Staphylococcus aureus infections – otherwise known as ‘golden staph’, a superbug responsible for more than one million deaths globally each year. In partnership with seven major Victorian hospitals, researchers from the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity (Doherty Institute), […]

Biggest study into OCD unlocks new genes

16 May 2025

QIMR Berghofer researchers have found the genes linked to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) for the first time, after identifying 30 regions on the human genome associated with this debilitating yet often misunderstood mental health condition. The global research (published in Nature Genetics) involved more than 50,000 people with OCD and 2 million people who did not have […]

Australia’s cancer challenge: Can AI unlock precise and personalised treatment at scale?

16 May 2025

A thousand years ago, the Persian physician Avicenna transformed medicine with his Canon of Medicine. He painstakingly compiled and organised centuries of knowledge into a unified, structured resource, empowering physicians with comprehensible and actionable insights. Today, medicine stands at a similar turning point. The challenge now isn’t a lack of information, but an excess of […]

Harnessing the power of data

15 May 2025

The eHealth Hub for Cancer has issued an urgent call for cross-border action on cancer data collection and analysis, and is warning that the Republic of Ireland must expedite the digitisation of oncology services or risk missing out on a “generation-defining” opportunity. “Ireland needs to urgently progress its own digital health capability, otherwise a generation-defining […]

ANU study to benefit treatment of genetic disease

2 May 2025

Scientists at Australian National University have used powerful AI technology to analyse genetic variations at an unprecedented scale. Researchers say it could lead to prioritising treatments and improving patient outcomes as genetic diseases are better diagnosed and treated. In a step forward for personalised medicine, they uncovered a hidden pattern which  revealed why less critical genes, […]

World-first clinical trial could change how cancer is treated

1 May 2025

In a breakthrough for the future of personalised medicines, a world-first clinical trial launched in Melbourne has the potential to revolutionise the way people with bowel cancer are treated. The trial, based on landmark WEHI research, is the first to look at whether a patient’s response to specific drugs can be accurately predicted, before they […]

Opinion: Where public health ends and personalised medicine begins

24 April 2025

The coming reckoning for AI in Australia, New Zealand healthcare The convergence of AI, public health, and personalised medicine isn’t coming, it is by all accounts, already here. But healthcare systems in Australia and New Zealand are not prepared for the questions it raises, nor the strategic and tactical overhaul it demands. We have long […]

Otago-led genomics research receives $25m Govt funding

23 April 2025

Genomics research aimed at improving health and economic wellbeing in New Zealand has received a new round of Strategic Science Investment Fund (SSIF) funding totalling $25million. Genomics Aotearoa, a collaborative research platform featuring a consortium of five New Zealand universities and five Crown Research Institutes, is led by the University of Otago and was established […]

Unlocking the promise of big data for genomics research

16 April 2025

A team at CSIRO has developed a tool – RAPpoet – to unlock the power of big data stored inside cloud biobanks –making genomic research faster and cheaper. CSIRO Genome Insights team leader Dr Natalie Twine said in its initial use case, RAPpoet reduced costs by 44% and analysis time by 94% compared to standard […]

Feature: Australian researchers call for greater diversity in genomics

31 March 2025

While scientific advances in genomics have been transformative for our ability to diagnose and treat disease, most genetic studies have focused on people of European descent. A new study has uncovered that a gene variant common in Oceanian communities was misclassified as a potential cause of heart disease, highlighting the risk of the current diversity […]

SA Genomics certified with Parse

25 March 2025

The South Australian Genomics Centre (SAGC) is the first in Australia to partner with Parse Biosciences as a Certified Service Provider. NATA-accredited SAGC is in Adelaide with labs in both the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) and Flinders University. It was established in July 2020 as a State-wide genomics facility to support […]

Indigenous values hard-wired into genomics platform

24 March 2025

Māori and non-Māori scientists have teamed up to develop a prototype platform that aims to link whole genome DNA sequencing data, healthcare records, and mātauranga whakapapa (genealogical knowledge) – all with te ao Māori principles “hard wired” into its setup. In a new paper Rakeiora Genomics Platform: a pathfinder for genomic medicine research in Aotearoa New […]

Personalised medicine shaped by risk assessment

19 March 2025

Australian genomics technology leader AGRF is offering Polygenic Risk Scores (PRS) powered by the Allelica PREDICT module, a cutting-edge platform that translates genomic data into actionable risk assessments. AGRF says healthcare providers will be able to better stratify risk, identifying high-risk individuals earlier, and implement targeted interventions before potential disease onset. “Genomics is revolutionising healthcare, […]

One step closer to banning genetic test discrimination

14 March 2025

Experts are hopeful the Australian Government’s promised ban on life insurers discriminating based on genetic test results is one step closer, with the Treasury consultation on the legislation’s design ending this week. Over 100 community organisations have endorsed a consultation submission led by Monash University researchers, representing wide collaboration and consensus between a broad range of stakeholders. Pulse+IT reported in […]

Funding to advance genomics in cancer trials

25 February 2025

The Government has established a $3 million Cancer Genomics Clinical Trials Fund to drive advancements in genomic medicine and ensure equitable access to cancer clinical trials incorporating genomics. The initial investment will be open to Australia’s 14 Multi-site Collaborative Cancer Clinical Trials Groups as part of the Support for Cancer Clinical Trials (SCCT) program. This […]

Irish AI health platform acquired by US health technology company

13 February 2025

The Irish start-up AI health platform Cambrean has been acquired by US health technology company Nucleus Genomics, for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition follows the successful close of a recent funding round by Nucleus Genomics which generated close to €14 million, bringing its total funding to nearly €31 million. Last year, Nucleus announced the launch […]