Your impact

Through initial community fundraising in 2024, we have already been able to fund vital research at leading institutions including the Centenary Institute, Garvan Institute, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, the Heart Foundation, and support advocacy at the Cardiomyopathy Association of Australia & New Zealand (CMANZ).

By drawing attention to this often silent condition, we aim to prevent further sudden cardiac deaths and strive to provide hope and resources to those affected.

Thanks to your ongoing generosity and support remembering Alexandra, you have helped fund research projects that specialise in the prevention of Sudden Cardiac Death (SCD) in the young.

Research institutes we support

Murdoch Children's Research Institute

Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) is the largest child health research institute in Australia. Based at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, MCRI has over 1,800 researchers working across more than 150 diseases and conditions affecting children.

The Heart Regeneration and Disease Team led by Professors Enzo Porrello and David Elliott utilises stem cell technologies to create human models of cardiomyopathies as a platform to:

Better understand the causes of cardiomyopathies,
Develop new drug treatments for cardiomyopathies
Develop cellular therapies to treat cardiomyopathy patients in heart failure.

Their co-location with The Royal Children’s Hospital and multidisciplinary team of clinicians, scientists and patient advocates has enabled them to create a research pipeline that spans the full spectrum from patients in the clinic through to patient cells in a dish.

Garvan Institute of Medical Research

Led by Associate Professor Jodie Ingles, the Ingles lab at the Garvan Institute is advancing genetic and molecular understanding of heart disease. Her team is focused on finding ways to use cardiac genomics and genetic counselling to improve diagnosis management and care of families with inherited cardiovascular diseases.

One of the main research projects, “Elusive Hearts” is a gene discovery study, aiming to identify genetic causes of inherited heart disease, for families where no genetic cause has been identified to date.

Jodie’s team also lead a national study IMPROVE-SCA www.improvesca.org which seeks to improve outcomes and survivorship following sudden cardiac arrest in the young.

Centenary Institute

The Centre for Cardiovascular Research at the Centenary Institute is dedicated to advancing precision medicine in cardiac health and providing essential support to the families affected.

Alongside groundbreaking research at the cellular level, the Centre facilitates genetic counselling and care, helping families understand their risk factors by funding genetic analysis.

This holistic approach not only aims to transform research into tailored care but also empowers families with knowledge and personalised interventions.