A Tasmanian medical researcher and professor has been jointly named as a recipient of the 2024 Australian of the Year award.
Melanoma research and treatment specialists Richard Scolyer, who was born in Launceston, was named alongside Georgina Long at a ceremony in Canberra on Thursday night.
Both serve as co-directors at the Melanoma Institute of Australia and have saved thousands of lives through their development of a melanoma treatment using an immunotherapy approach.
Speaking to the crowd Professor Scolyer, who has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer, shared that he “doesn’t want to die”.
Meet your new Australians of the Year, Professor Georgina Long and Professor Richard Scolyer.
Thanks to their lifesaving research, advanced melanoma is now a curable disease. pic.twitter.com/XahHciZaDg
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) January 25, 2024
“I’m one of the many thousands of cancer patients who’ve travelled this path and thousands will follow,” he said.
“Devising this world-first experimental treatment for my type of brain cancer was bold. For me, the decision to take on Georgina’s groundbreaking plan was a no-brainer.”
“Here was an opportunity for us to crack another incurable cancer and make a difference – if not for me, then for others.”
