Bench Side Story

PHYSIOTHERAPIST-LED CARE FOR MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONS IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT

With
Associate Professor Gustavo Machado
University of Sydney @Sydney_Uni &
NHMRC Principal Research Fellow,
Institute for Musculoskeletal Health @msk_health, Australia

RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Sydney, Australia | November 2026

Associate Professor Gustavo Machado is a physiotherapist and health services researcher at the University of Sydney and the Institute for Musculoskeletal Health, Sydney Local Health District. He holds an NHMRC Investigator Fellowship (EL2) and a University of Sydney Robinson Fellowship.

With over 15 years of research experience, he leads a program focused on transforming musculoskeletal and emergency care through evidence-based practice. His research involves large-scale clinical trials evaluating treatments for musculoskeletal pain, strategies to reduce low-value care, and innovative models of emergency, hospital and virtual care. His work aims to improve patient outcomes, healthcare efficiency and health system sustainability.

Associate Professor Machado has published over 150 peer-reviewed papers in leading journals, including The Lancet, The BMJ, The Lancet Rheumatology and JAMA Health Forum, attracting more than 6,500 citations. He ranks among the world's top 2% of scientists (Stanford/Elsevier), and his research has informed over 100 policy documents across 17 countries.

He has secured $29 million in competitive research funding as a Chief Investigator and received 30 research and impact awards, including the Research Australia Award, ANZMUSC Trial of the Year and NSW Health Secretary's Award.

Funding for Associate Professor Machado's research has included National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) @NHMRC, Medical Research Futures Fund, HCF Australia Research Foundation and Ramsay Hospital Research Foundation.

His collaborations include NSW Ambulance @NSWAmbulance, NSW Agency for Clinical Innovation @nswaci, Australian Physiotherapy Association @apaphysio, Australasian College for Emergency Medicine and the Australian & New Zealand College of Emergency Nursing.

He contributes to national research and health policy committees, including the NHMRC, Australasian College for Emergency Medicine and ANZMUSC. He is a Fellow of the International Society for Quality in Health Care and a member of the Royal Society of NSW @royalsocnsw.

Source: Supplied

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3D PRINTING, BIOPRINTING & STEM CELL TECH IN ARTICULAR CARTILAGE REGENERATION AND TREATING OSTEOSARCOMA

With
Associate Professor Claudia Di Bella @Claudiadibella_ Orthopaedic surgeon, Melbourne, Australia & Associate Professor of Surgery, University of Melbourne, Australia & Chair, Australian Orthopaedic Association (AOA) Research Foundation

RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Sydney, Australia | November 2026

Associate Professor Claudia Di Bella is an academic orthopaedic surgeon based in Melbourne, specialising in orthopaedic oncology and complex joint reconstruction. Originally trained at the world-renowned Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute in Bologna, Italy, (IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli) she moved to Australia in 2010. She was awarded Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in 2013 and Fellowship of Australian Orthopaedic Association (AOA) in 2014.

She is Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Melbourne and leads a translational research program focused on tissue engineering and innovative solutions to improve outcomes for patients with musculoskeletal disease, in particular bone sarcomas. Her research has attracted over AUD $6 million in competitive funding, including an NHMRC–MRFF Clinical Investigator Grant, and has resulted in more than 60 peer-reviewed publications, book chapters and numerous national and international presentations. She is passionate about bridging the gap between scientific discovery and meaningful improvements in patient care.

As an Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Melbourne, she is the clinical lead of the cartilage regeneration program and osteosarcoma 3D printing program at the Biofab3D, part of the Aikenhead Centre for Medical Discovery (ACMD).

Clinically, A/Prof Di Bella is one of Australia’s few orthopaedic oncology surgeons, managing complex bone and soft tissue tumours and performing high-volume limb salvage surgery and joint reconstruction. Her work combines surgical expertise, innovation and multidisciplinary care for patients facing life-changing diagnoses.

Beyond her clinical and academic roles, Claudia is a strong advocate for diversity, inclusion and representation in medicine. Through national and international leadership roles, including within orthopaedic surgery and sarcoma organisations, she actively mentors the next generation of surgeons and researchers, with a particular commitment to supporting women and underrepresented groups in STEMM and surgical careers.

Source: Supplied and supplemented

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DRUG DELIVERY OF TARGETED THERAPIES FOR PANCREATIC CANCER, MOTOR NEURONE DISEASE

Associate Professor Kara Vine-Perrow, Deputy Director Community Partnerships and Impact, Molecular Horizons Research Institute, University of Wollongong @UOW & Group Leader, Targeted Cancer Therapeutics Research Laboratory, University of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia

RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia | October 2026

Associate Professor Kara Vine-Perrow is a cancer researcher, educator and research leader in the Faculty of Science, Medicine & Health at the University of Wollongong, where she serves as Deputy Director (Community Partnership and Impact) of the Molecular Horizons Research Institute and leads the Targeted Cancer Therapeutics Laboratory. Her research focuses on developing innovative drug delivery technologies, implantable medical devices and RNA-based therapeutics for difficult-to-treat diseases, with a particular emphasis on pancreatic cancer and motor neurone disease.

Assoc Prof Vine-Perrow is internationally recognised for her work in translational therapeutics, advancing discoveries from the laboratory towards clinical application through partnerships with clinicians, industry, government and patient advocacy organisations. She leads multidisciplinary programs that combine nanomedicine, biomaterials and localised drug delivery to improve treatment outcomes for patients with limited therapeutic options.

A key focus of her research is ResectAssist™, an implantable drug delivery platform designed to deliver therapeutics directly to pancreatic tumours. Supported by funding from the NHMRC @nhmrc , Cancer Institute NSW @cancerNSW , Australian Economic Accelerator, FightMND @FightMND , and Tour de Cure @tourdecure_aus , her research aims to accelerate the translation of innovative therapeutics and medical technologies from the laboratory to patient care. She also works closely with industry partners to accelerate commercialisation and real-world patient impact.

Beyond research, Assoc Prof Vine-Perrow is passionate about mentoring the next generation of scientists and has supervised numerous PhD and Honours students into successful careers across academia, healthcare and industry. She is committed to ensuring that research outcomes translate into meaningful improvements patients and the broader community.

Source and images: Supplied

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RESEARCH IMPACT: 32 YEARS OF UNDERSTANDING, DIAGNOSING, TREATING & PREVENTING THE ONSET OF HEART DISEASE

With
Professor Jason Kovacic
CEO & Institute Director,
Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute &
Practicing Clinical Cardiologist, St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney Australia &
Professor of Medicine
The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai @IcahnMountSinai
New York, United States

RESEARCH IMPACT
Filmed in Sydney, Australia | October 2026

The Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute is dedicated to finding cures for cardiovascular disease through world-class and cutting-edge medical research.

The Institute's team seeks to discover better ways of understanding, diagnosing, treating, and preventing the onset of heart disease. It is committed to ensuring its research breakthroughs are rapidly translated into advances in clinical care.

The Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute was founded in 1994 in honour of the legendary heart transplant surgeon Dr Victor Chang AC. In 1996, the late Diana, Princess of Wales, officially opened the institute in Sydney, Australia.

Beginning with just two scientists, it has more than 250 scientists, doctors, and staff working together across 26 laboratories nationwide. It is renowned for the quality of its scientific discoveries worldwide.

In 2022, the Institute expanded its national footprint by establishing a new heart disease research hub in partnership with The University of Western Australia and in 2025 announced a new collaboration with the Perth-based Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research. It has also established hubs in South Western Sydney and Melbourne. This is allowing researchers and scientists to accelerate life-saving discoveries that benefit all Australians and deliver international impact.

The Institute is also a proud partner of the St Vincent’s Sydney Health Innovation Precinct - comprised of St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney, the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, St Vincent’s Private Hospital Sydney and St Vincent’s Clinic.

In this interview on the impact of research undertaken by the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, Professor Jason Kovacic talks about the following studies:

- Funnel web spider venom to develop world’s first cardiac protective drug for heart transplants and heart attacks doi.org/10.1161/CIRCUL…

- Discovery and role of PHACTR1 gene in vascular diseases including spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc…

- Artificial intelligence and machine learning to predict disease progression & better outcomes of aortic stenosis doi.org/10.3389/fcvm.2…

Source: Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute website

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LARGE-SCALE CLINICAL AND POPULATION-BASED RESEARCH

Professor Christopher Reid,
Cardiovascular Epidemiologist & Research Professor,
School of Public Health & Preventive Medicine, Monash University @MonashUni , Victoria, Australia & School of Population Health at Curtin University @CurtinMedia , Western Australia & Chair, Australian Clinical Trials Alliance (ACTA) @ACTA_org

RESEARCHER PROFILE
Filmed in Perth, Australia | October 2026

Christopher Reid is an internationally renowned cardiovascular epidemiologist with appointments as a Research Professor in both the School of Population Health at Curtin University and the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, at Monash University.

He was re-appointed as a John Curtin Distinguished Professor in 2021 and is currently Director of the Monash and Curtin Centre for Clinical Research and Education (CCRE). He has been awarded over $178M as a Chief Investigator and has received continuous NHMRC funding since 2001.

His major research interests include clinical outcome registries, randomised controlled trials, and epidemiological cohort studies. He has over 820 peer-reviewed publications (with over 44000 citations and a H-Index of 91) many of which are in leading journals including the New England Journal of Medicine, the Lancet, JAMA, JACC, and the BMJ.

He is a Chief Investigator for the Colchicine in Type 2 diabetes trial (COLCOT-T2D), the Aspirin in the Elderly (ASPREE) trial, the HOPE-3 trial, the Statins in Reducing Events in the Elderly (STAREE) trial and the LEADER-PAD trial. He is also the research director for the Australian and New Zealand Cardiothoracic database (ANZSCTS) registry and the Victorian Cardiac Outcomes registry (VCOR).

He is the Board Chair of the Australian Clinical Trials Alliance (ACTA) and a board member of the Australian New Zealand Alliance for Cardiovascular Trials (ANZACT) Network and the Australian Cardiovascular Alliance (ACVA).

Prof Reid has trained more than 30 PhD students to completion and undertaken assignments for the World Health Organization in cardiovascular disease prevention in the Asia Pacific Region.

Source: Supplied

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