The Liberal National Government is supporting research that will help us understand the role of cognitive networks in Parkinson’s disease with the hope of leading to better treatment and self-management of the disease.
Parkinson’s disease is a progressive, degenerative neurological condition that affects a person’s control of their body movements.
It currently affects about 40,000 Australians and incidence of Parkinson’s disease increases with age and is slightly more common in men than in women.
Dr James Shine, from the University of Sydney, will receive $404,228 in funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) to examine the role of cognitive networks in Parkinson’s disease.
More than 10 million people worldwide suffer from Parkinson’s disease, with up to one third of patients also suffering from deficits in cognition.
Dr Shine’s proposal, will use novel brain imaging techniques to find out what’s causing loss of cognition and provide new inroads into this troubling disorder. This research will help develop world leading technology to help people with Parkinson’s disease self-manage their disease and therapy requirements.
This is an important area of research due to the burden of Parkinson’s disease experienced by the Australian community.
This critical research project is among National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) grants worth more than $526 million.
Health and medical research is a key pillar supporting Australia’s world-class health system and is critical to improving healthcare and improving the health of our nation.
The 2018–19 Budget we provided a record total of $6 billion to Australia’s health and medical research sector, including $1.3 billion for a health and medical industry growth plan to drive a new era of better health care and fuel jobs and growth.