Leading NSW researchers team up to tackle cardiovascular disease

The NSW Government is investing $8.7 million into collaborative cardiovascular research projects to drive improvements in the prevention and treatment of heart disease and stroke.

Minister for Medical Research David Harris said the nine grants would create collaborative opportunities across a number of leading research institutes and universities so that knowledge and skills are shared.

“These grants highlight the power of bringing the right people together to solve health problems in the hope of saving lives,” Mr Harris said.

“With this increased funding, we are positioning NSW as a leader in cardiovascular research.” 

Associate Professor Jean-Frédéric Levesque, NSW Health Deputy Secretary, Clinical Innovation and Research, said cardiovascular disease currently affects more than four million Australians and is responsible for one in four deaths.

“Tragically, this equates to a rate of 118 people each day who die as a result of heart and vascular diseases,” Assoc. Prof. Levesque said.

“Investment in innovative and translational research in this space is vital because we want to ensure our health system is doing everything possible to prevent, detect and treat cardiovascular disease.”

The nine funded projects involve expert multidisciplinary teams from several research institutions. Each project team also includes two or more early career researchers to ensure that the NSW Government is building a future pipeline of researchers in this critical field.

The Cardiovascular Collaborative Research Grants are part of the $150 million the NSW government has committed to cardiovascular disease research over a 10-year period.

The Grants will cover a range of research areas, including:

• prevention of recurrent stroke 
• new treatments to repair damaged heart muscle
• enhancement of implantable medical devices including stents 
• better diagnosis and prevention of immune system driven blood clots 
• developing new materials that will last longer than current treatments for heart valve disease
• supporting reduction in high blood pressure across the whole population 
• preventing atrial fibrillation by identifying and treating its causes 
• exploring the impact of women’s diets during pregnancy on the long-term cardiac health of their children
• evaluating new anti-clotting therapies to reduce brain damage and other complications of acute stroke. 

Further information on all recipients’ and their research projects is available in the Project Directory.