Early career researchers’ success recognised in the Premier’s Awards for Health and Medical Research
Dr Louisa Picco, Dr Charles Bayly-Jones, Dr Lisa Higgins, Dr Edmond Kwan
Monash Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences celebrates the success of four of our early career researchers who have been recognised in the 2024-2025 Premier’s Awards for Health and Medical Research. The Victorian Government’s annual awards recognise the exceptional contributions of Victoria’s early career health and medical researchers and highlight the breadth of work being undertaken in Victoria to make significant improvements to the lives of people around the world.
Out of a possible six awards, our researchers were awarded as winners or finalists across five categories. Dr Lisa Higgins from the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine received the Premier’s Award for Health and Medical Research Excellence and the Clinical Researcher Award, Dr Charles Bayly-Jones from Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute won the Basic Science Researcher Award, Dr Louisa Picco from Eastern Health Clinical School won the Public Health Researcher Award and Dr Edmond Kwan from Eastern Health Clinical School was a finalist in the Clinical Researcher Award category.
Deputy Dean (Research), Professor James Whisstock, congratulated the researchers. “I’m absolutely delighted to see the outstanding achievements of our fantastic early career researchers recognised in the Premier’s Awards for Health and Medical Research, many of whom have also been supported by the faculty’s Early Career Research Excellence Program, an initiative funded through generous philanthropic donations to the faculty,” he said. “These young researchers are future leaders of Australian medical research, and it is brilliant to see their hard work and dedication recognised.”
Read more about successful recipients:
Dr Lisa Higgins - Winner, Premier's Award for Health and Medical Research Excellence and Clinician-Researcher Award
Dr Lisa Higgins, health economics specialist in the Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Research Centre in the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, won the Premier's Award for Health and Medical Research and the Clinician Researcher Award for her work on the long-term health outcomes of critically ill COVID-19 patients.
Her award-winning analysis was part of the REMAP-CAP Trial, a complex international clinical platform trial led by Monash University that rapidly pivoted in 2020 to evaluate treatments for critically ill patients hospitalised with severe COVID-19, becoming one of the key global trials testing multiple treatments simultaneously in real-time across over 300 hospitals in 25 countries. It was identified by the UK Chief Medical Officer as one of the three essential COVID-19 trials for the country, with the results informing global health practice and policy for treating the virus in critically ill people. Crucially, her work was the first to demonstrate a clear link between the short-term clinical improvements that many trials measure and the longer-term, patient-focused outcomes that truly matter to survivors and their families, as they navigate recovery and return to daily lives.
Dr Charles Bayly-Jones - Winner, Basic Science Research Award
Dr Charles Bayly-Jones, structural biologist from Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute won the Basic Science Research Award for his work in deciphering the pathways and molecular machinery that govern cell growth. His research focuses on cholesterol and how this important nutrient affects our metabolism. He used an advanced form of microscopy to generate three-dimensional snapshots of a molecular machine called LYCHOS at unprecedented magnification. These snapshots provide the first detailed picture of LYCHOS, explaining the machinery that enables cholesterol detection in mammals. Scientists use this information to understand the complex biological processes that underpin our cellular function.
Importantly, for the first time, the research project also discovered an entirely new branch of molecules in humans, fundamentally changing the current understanding of this class of molecule. The new knowledge also provides valuable targets for drug development, opening up new ways to treat diseases associated with high cholesterol, such as cancer, which are linked to problems with metabolism. Ultimately, the discovery provides a better understanding of how cells manage nutrients and how these processes are regulated to keep us healthy.
Dr Louisa Picco - Winner, Public Health Researcher Award
Dr Louisa Picco, NHMRC Emerging Leader Research Fellow and Program Lead for Drug Policy and Harm Reduction at the Monash Addiction Research Centre in the Eastern Health Clinical School, won the Public Health Researcher Award for her work in addressing and reducing opioid-related harms.
Opioid-related harms are a global public health concern, with Australia having one of the highest per capita opioid prescribing rates in the world. Opioid use is associated with a range of harms, including overdose and death. To address and reduce these harms, a range of approaches must be adopted and implemented. Dr Picco’s research has explored the implementation of opioid policies, harm reduction strategies, the use of screening tools to identify opioid related risks for use in clinical practice and public education and awareness. Collectively, her research has informed national and international strategies to reduce opioid-related harms, providing evidence-informed insights that improve patient safety and healthcare decision-making.
Dr Edmond Kwan - Finalist, Clinical Researcher Award
Dr Edmond Kwan, a clinician-scientist and genitourinary cancer medical oncologist at the Eastern Health Clinical School and Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute, is a finalist in the Clinical Researcher Award category for his work in developing a blood test that can guide better treatment decisions in advanced prostate cancer treatment.
In a world-first study, Dr Kwan and his research team analysed nearly 300 blood samples from participants in the Australian ‘TheraP’ clinical trial. They aimed to determine whether circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) could identify patients most likely to benefit from a new innovative intravenous radiation therapy known as Lutetium-177 PSMA (LuPSMA). They discovered that patients with low ctDNA levels had far better outcomes with LuPSMA than traditional chemotherapy, making this the first blood-based biomarker to guide treatment decisions between two active prostate cancer therapies. They also identified genetic markers linked to LuPSMA success or failure, and uncovered how resistance develops over time. These findings could rapidly improve clinical care, as ctDNA technologies are increasingly available to doctors in the clinic. Integrating ctDNA testing into routine practice could help doctors personalise prostate cancer treatment, reduce unnecessary side effects by stopping futile treatments sooner, and optimise the use of healthcare resources, ensuring LuPSMA reaches those most likely to benefit.
Find out more about the Premier’s Awards for Health and Medical Research.
About Monash University
Monash University is Australia’s largest university with more than 80,000 students. In the 60 years since its foundation, it has developed a reputation for world-leading high-impact research, quality teaching, and inspiring innovation.
With four campuses in Australia and a presence in Malaysia, China, India, Indonesia and Italy, it is one of the most internationalised Australian universities.
As a leading international medical research university with the largest medical faculty in Australia and integration with leading Australian teaching hospitals, we consistently rank in the top 50 universities worldwide for clinical, pre-clinical and health sciences.
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