Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute | Impact Report 2018
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IMPAC T REPORT 2018 Finding cures for cardiovascular disease through medical research Heart attacks + stroke Stem cells Pregnancy + birth defects Life-saving Inherited heart disease research Heart transplants Genetic analysis Cardiac arrests ANNUAL REVIEW 2018 01 No.1 Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death globally Contents SUBJECT PAGE NO. About Us 02 The Problem 03 PREVENTING HEARTBREAK William’s Story 04 Chairman’s Report 06 42/wk 42 babies are born Executive Director’s Report 10 with a heart defect PREVENTING HEARTBREAK Liza’s Story 12 every week Organisational Structure 13 Board of Directors 14 The Power of Discovery 16 THE SOLUTION Seeing really is believing 18 THE SOLUTION Our ace of hearts 22 THE SOLUTION Sequence of success 26 Research Divisions 30 Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute Innovation Centre 32 PREVENTING HEARTBREAK Fred’s Story 34 Statement of Income and Expenditure 35 Health Check Booth 36 Cover image. In a recent paper published in the Sohn Hearts & Minds prestigious journal Nature, Dr Gonzalo Del Monte Nieto, Investment Leaders Conference 38 Professor Richard Harvey and their colleagues put forward a new model for how the pumping chambers of the heart Achievements and Awards 40 form in the developing embryo. Central to this model is how fibrous extracellular material, called extracellular matrix, 42 Fundraising Events organises the growth of cardiac muscle cells, necessary for Supporters and Acknowledgments 44 proper heart function. This image is a view from inside the ventricles of the main pumping chamber of a developing Support Life-Saving Heart Research 49 heart, with cardiac muscle shown in red, and the extracellular matrix shown in blue. In normal (wild type – left) hearts, you can see the extracellular matrix material organised into a series of domes separated at their base by threads of cardiac muscle. However, the growth of the cardiac muscle occurs mostly within the matrix domes. In hearts that carry a defect in the gene for Neuregulin 1 (Nrg1tm/tm – right), responsible for the synthesis of the extracellular matrix, the domes do not form well and the underlying muscle becomes exposed and does not grow properly, severely affecting heart function. This study will provide a new framework for understanding heart development and the causation of congenital heart disease. Read more about these findings on page 16. 02 VICTOR CHANG CARDIAC RESEARCH INSTITUTE About Us The Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute is dedicated to finding cures for cardiovascular disease through world class medical research. Renowned for the quality of its breakthroughs, the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute uses innovative transplantation techniques and conducts complex molecular and genetic analysis. It integrates advanced stem cell research, regenerative medicine and bio‑engineering, to discover better ways of diagnosing, treating and ultimately preventing the onset of heart disease. Our Mission Our Values Our 2018 Statistics The relief of pain Excellence: 320 and suffering, and to achieve excellence in research researchers and staff the promotion of Creativity: 114 wellbeing, through an to demonstrate creativity in the scientific publications pursuit of scientific discovery understanding of the 23 Integrity: laboratories fundamental mechanisms to act with honesty, integrity 80 and fairness at all times of cardiovascular biology seminars hosted at the Victor in health and disease. Impact: Chang Cardiac Research Institute to undertake research that has 10,035 significant impact and makes people tested by the a difference Health Check Booth Teamwork: 800 to promote a sense of teamwork people toured the Victor Chang and collegiality amongst staff Cardiac Research Institute and collaborators ANNUAL REVIEW 2018 03 The Problem No.1 12min Heart disease is the One Australian dies from single biggest killer cardiovascular disease of Australians every 12 minutes Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death globally. It claims the life of one Australian every 12 minutes and can affect anyone regardless of age or gender. Labelled Australia’s most expensive disease, it currently costs more than $12 billion in healthcare expenditure per year. $12bn 10min The Victor Chang Cardiac Research Cardiovascular disease One Australian costs the economy suffers a heart attack Institute is a key part of a global up to $12 billion a year every 10 minutes community working towards making a difference for the 4.2 million Australians living with effects of heart disease. Our job doesn’t stop until we find a cure to end all suffering. 3× 22/day Three times more women Heart disease kills die of heart disease 22 Australian women than breast cancer every day 1/500 40/day One in 500 people Forty Australians are affected by die of a heart rhythm cardiomyopathy disorder every day Preventing Heartbreak: William’s Story 04 VICTOR CHANG CARDIAC RESEARCH INSTITUTE Preventing Heartbreak At the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, we’re striving towards transforming the lives of millions of people living with heart disease. Every day we search for answers. Answers for the people living with its devastating effects. We are striving to solve the unsolved. William’s Story “Our introduction to the world of heart disease JULIA, WILLIAM’S MUM was sudden, unexpected and truly terrifying. It was August 2015 and our little boy, William, We are so grateful had been unwell with suspected gastro. But he wasn’t recovering, so we took him to a GP. We to the incredible were told to take him home and give him Panadol doctors and because the doctor thought he had a virus. Six hours surgeons we have, later we were in emergency. William was actually in end‑stage heart failure, with a diagnosis of and how modern dilated cardiomyopathy. medicine has given Everything was surreal. The next day we were our son a future. told William was in a critical state and that he’d be put on ECMO, or short‑term life support, and then most likely be given a ventricular assist device until a heart transplant became our only option. We remember it was midnight and we were sitting with two cardiologists being told the news … we just sat there thinking ‘how did this happen? How did we not know?’ Research Update Professor Diane Fatkin and her team of researchers are using cutting‑edge technology, including next generation sequencing techniques, to find genetic variants in families with dilated cardiomyopathy. Professor Fatkin and her team are hoping to identify new approaches that can assist in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of inherited heart disease. ANNUAL REVIEW 2018 05 129 In 2018, 129 Australians received a life‑ saving heart William with his brother, Mason, dad, Tristan, mum, Julia and sister, Eliza William recovering after his heart transplant transplant a. b. Now we understand the grunting breaths, the puffiness, the excessive sweating, the dry cough … they were all signs of heart failure. We couldn’t believe it. Just that morning, William had been diving off the couch like any other crazy, unstoppable 17‑month‑old baby. We spent just over six months in hospital – four‑and‑a‑half months waiting for a heart transplant and another two‑and‑a‑half months recovering after the transplant. It was incredibly tough on our family. Our life is now complicated and full of anxieties. But William is alive. And we know each day is a blessing.” b Research Update Professor Peter Macdonald’s laboratory is pioneering a new era a of heart transplantation, which is expected to be implemented around the globe. His team is working on novel methods of donor heart preservation with the hope of extending this life‑saving treatment to more Australians. 06 VICTOR CHANG CARDIAC RESEARCH INSTITUTE Chairman’s Report Perseverance is something our scientists have in abundance. Not to mention endurance and imagination. It takes years of pragmatic, methodical and meticulous investigation to make a life‑changing breakthrough in heart research. That’s the commitment the scientists at the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute make. These gifted and passionate men and women have devoted their lives to help bring us closer to the future they imagine. The research A future in which no baby will be born breakthroughs continue with a heart defect and there will be Through this ongoing work, again better and more effective cures for this year our scientists have made discoveries that will change the cardiovascular disease. lives of people around the globe. One such landmark breakthrough was accomplished by Professor Richard Harvey and his team, shedding new light on heart defects in babies. Our hope is that this groundbreaking research will provide insights into how we might coax the human heart to regenerate its own cells. Imagine that. And then imagine the possibilities to come from the work of Professor Roland Stocker and his team, who have developed the first non‑invasive test to diagnose those likely to suffer a heart attack. ANNUAL REVIEW 2018 07 Matthew Grounds, Chairman Grounds, Matthew c c. Further still, Professor Bob Graham, The NSW Government recognises our founding Executive Director, the cost of cardiovascular disease and his team, in collaboration Our hope is that on society. We have been fortunate with international colleagues, to receive $25 million from the discovered the first genetic marker this groundbreaking NSW Government to develop the of spontaneous coronary artery research will provide world class Victor Chang Cardiac dissection or SCAD, which is insights into how Research Institute Innovation killing otherwise fit women in Centre. Most recently, the NSW their 40s and 50s. we might coax Government has made a game‑ the human heart changing $150 million investment NSW Government support to regenerate in cardiovascular research which is While the advances our scientists set to revolutionise the treatment make are genuinely life‑changing its own cells. and prevention of heart disease (as detailed in the Executive Imagine that.