May 31, 2017 was marked by a special milestone celebration for the STAREE Study – the involvement of the 1000th participant. Over 100 people were invited to this event including representatives from the Heart Foundation, Stroke Foundation and various community networks.

Mrs Susan Ball, the 1000th participant, joined STAREE with the hope of contributing to medical knowledge stating “we have all benefited from medical research in some way and this is my opportunity to contribute to progress in medical research”. Mrs Ball hopes her contribution may benefit her children and grandchildren in the future.

The STAREE team celebrated this momentous occasion with an afternoon tea held at the Melbourne metropolitan research office, within Monash University. The celebration also acknowledged the valued involvement of 400 general practices to date, and Professor Sophia Zoungas (Principal Investigator) made a special mention of the valued support of the general practitioner community, as well as all the participants currently involved.

STAREE could not have reached this goal without the dedication and commitment of the STAREE staff, GP Co-Investigators and Community advocates.

_{Pictured from left: Professor Sophia Zoungas, Mrs Susan Ball (1000th participant), Mr Laurie Ball, George Dwyer, STAREE Clinical Trial Officer.}