Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI)

Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI) We're taking healthy further. Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI) exists to transform the health and wellbeing of our communities. We’re thinking long term.

As the largest regional medical research institute in Australia, since 1998 our groundbreaking work has changed the lives of so many. We could never have done it alone. HMRI has been about collaboration from day one, when a group of world-class researchers, health professionals and community leaders created an organisation to make a positive impact on peoples’ lives. The unique partnership with our local health district, university and community, has enabled us to punch above our weight and work together in agile ways to tackle the biggest health issues of our time. We remain focused on innovation and medical research that’s relevant to everyday life. Our world leading experts collaborate across multi-disciplinary teams with one goal: to help our community be healthier and live their best lives. We’re working in the lab and beyond. We’re always listening and learning from our community to help us shape our research priorities, so we can make sure we’re providing impact where it’s needed most. At HMRI, every day we’re taking healthy further.

26/03/2026

Colorectal cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-related death globally.
For many patients, surgery is life-saving. But it can come with a serious, sometimes fatal, complication that doctors currently have no reliable way to predict or prevent.

This National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, we're spotlighting HMRI's Microleaks Project, led by colorectal surgeon Associate Professor Peter Pockney and microbiologist Dr Emily Hoedt.

Their research is investigating the role the gut microbiome plays in anastomotic leaks, one of the most serious complications of bowel surgery, which can leave patients with a permanent stoma bag or, in the worst cases, cost them their life. The goal is a probiotic that could prepare a patient's body to heal before surgery even begins.

Emily and her team are around five years away from a medical advance that could change outcomes for bowel surgery patients worldwide. But 92% of Australian medical research grant applications miss out on government funding every year, and this project is no exception.

Learn more and support the research:
https://okt.to/EOe0qP

Hill to Harbour is this Sunday, and Team HMRI is on the move! 🏃‍♀️Thank you to everyone who has donated so far! You've h...
25/03/2026

Hill to Harbour is this Sunday, and Team HMRI is on the move! 🏃‍♀️

Thank you to everyone who has donated so far! You've helped us raise $8,809 towards our $20,000 goal, and every dollar funds research into the conditions touching the lives of people right here in our community, from cancer and heart disease to dementia and mental health.

$100 can help keep a lab running
$500 helps fund an MRI
$1,000 can help power a full day of research

It all adds up, and it all makes a difference.

Donate to Team HMRI or support one of our runners:
https://okt.to/rGjW8A

We are incredibly grateful to announce Art for Impact 2026 raised over $80,000!Three days at Earp Distilling Co. where l...
24/03/2026

We are incredibly grateful to announce Art for Impact 2026 raised over $80,000!

Three days at Earp Distilling Co. where local artists and so many wonderful people came together in support of medical research right here in the Hunter.

From the artists who so generously donated their works, to the guests who came along and the bidders who took something beautiful home, this was a true community effort. That $80,000 goes directly to the research working to prevent, treat and cure diseases impacting our Hunter New England community and beyond.

A heartfelt thank you to our presenting partners HIC Services and sponsors Cougar Group, Entire Concrete, Turks and MOVABLELE, whose support helped make every bit of it possible.

📸 Art for Impact Long, Long Luncheon captured by EMG photography

23/03/2026

When research funding declines, so does the science that protects us all.

That's why immunologist Dr Alexandra Spencer is running 12km at Hill to Harbour this Sunday for HMRI 🔬🏃‍♀️

Based right here in Newcastle, Alex is channelling her passion for understanding how our immune system fights disease into every step of the 12km course.

Learn more and support Alex's run for medical research: https://okt.to/UnDEjx

23/03/2026

Too many coal workers only find out about lung disease once the damage is already done. HMRI is working to change that.

A new study, co-led by Professor Jay Horvat from HMRI's Immune Health Research Program, is trialling advanced lung function tests that can pick up what standard spirometry misses.

Spirometry has been the go-to test in coal worker medicals since the 1970s, but newer technologies can detect structural changes and early signs of inflammation long before symptoms appear and before anything becomes permanent.

The tests include breath analysis through mass spectrometry, which uses machine learning to identify chemical markers that could signal early lung disease, giving workers and clinicians the chance to act while there's still time.

Occupational lung diseases like COPD, silicosis, and pneumoconiosis can be life-altering. Some progress to cancer. Some require a lung transplant. Early detection doesn't just improve outcomes, it can change the entire trajectory.

If you're a coal worker attending Happy Health Warners Bay or Coal Services Health Speers Point, you can contribute. It takes as little as 15 minutes to add on to your existing medical, and all data is anonymous and confidential.

Learn more: https://okt.to/x6sw32

Funded by Coal Services Health and Safety Trust, the study brings together HMRI, The University of Newcastle, Australia, UNSW, University of Sydney, and Woolcock Institute of Medical Research, with Happy Health supporting on-the-ground testing.

20/03/2026

Every neurodivergent diagnosis represents a journey that takes real courage.

Dr Laura Roche, researcher from HMRI and The University of Newcastle, Australia, reminds us that behind every diagnosis is a deeply personal story. One that begins with the courage to be vulnerable with a GP, continues through waitlists that can stretch up to a year, and involves real financial commitment.
People take these steps because the right support can genuinely change lives.

For Neurodiversity Celebration Week, Dr Roche encourages all of us to celebrate the diversity and difference in everyone we meet, and to see neurodivergence beyond the headlines that so often misrepresent it.

Learn more: https://okt.to/W8IfKC

19/03/2026

Run for real impact. 🏃

Less than two weeks to go until Hill to harbour 2026! Whether you're lacing up on 29 March or cheering from the sidelines, there's a way for everyone to be part of something bigger.

Your fundraising helps fuel local medical research that's bringing better health outcomes closer for the whole Hunter community, one kilometre at a time.

Join team HMRI or make a donation in support:
https://okt.to/1HNFRp

18/03/2026

When we recognise neurodiversity, we strengthen our communities.

The media often frames rising ADHD and autism diagnoses as a pandemic. But the evidence, as highlighted by HMRI and The University of Newcastle, Australia researcher Dr Laura Roche, tells a different story.

What we’re seeing isn’t necessarily a true rise in prevalence, but a shift in recognition, understanding, and the strength of the research behind it.

Improved screening tools, transdisciplinary diagnostic teams and a growing commitment to listening to the lived experience of neurodivergent people means we are capturing a much fuller picture than ever before. And when we see that fuller picture, we are far better placed to understand and support neurodiverse individuals.

And that is something worth celebrating. As Dr Roche puts it, every neurotype is incredible. Alongside the challenges are real strengths, and neurodivergent people are genuine assets to our communities.

For Neurodiversity Celebration Week, Dr Roche and HMRI's Dr Patrick Skippen explore what the science really shows beyond the headlines:
https://okt.to/91FTCm

17/03/2026

What if the very molecules driving some of the deadliest brain cancers could also be used to destroy them?

High grade gliomas affect more than 2,100 Australians every year, with median survival rarely exceeding 15 months.

New research from HMRI's Cancer Signalling Research Group, led by The University of Newcastle, Australia PhD candidate Pooja Kumari and Professor Matt Dun, is exploring a fascinating new angle on treatment.

Their work, published in Trends in Cancer, uncovers what they call the "redox paradox." The reactive oxygen species that help tumours survive and grow are also, at high enough levels, capable of destroying them.

The team is now exploring how to push cancer cells past that tipping point, and make existing treatments like radiation more effective in the process.

For families facing these diagnoses, this research offers real hope where it is urgently needed.

Learn more about the research: https://okt.to/kZO2cb

Three days. 70+ artworks. One incredible community coming together at Earp Distilling Co to support life-changing medica...
16/03/2026

Three days. 70+ artworks. One incredible community coming together at Earp Distilling Co to support life-changing medical research in the Hunter.

This is what Art for Impact is all about.

We are so grateful to every artist who donated their work, every guest who showed up across the weekend, and every bidder who took something beautiful home for a genuinely good cause.

A huge thank you to our presenting partner HIC Services and our wonderful sponsors Cougar group, Entire Concrete, Turks and MOVABLE. Your support made this event possible and we are deeply grateful.

Keep an eye out for more photos from the weekend, along with the final fundraising total!

13/03/2026

Art for Impact 2026 opens its doors tonight at Earp Distilling Co. and we could not be more excited!

Missed out on Opening Night tickets? No stress. Join us tomorrow, Saturday 14 March 1-4pm for a free drop-in session to view the works of 70+ talented local artists.

Can’t make it in person? The full collection is available to browse and bid on online:
https://hmri.org.au/get-involved/art-for-impact/

A huge thank you to our incredible presenting partner HIC Services and sponsors Cougar Services , Entire Concrete, MOVABLE and Turks for making this night possible.

12/03/2026

Did you know poor sleep could be linked to dementia risk?

This World Sleep Day, Dr Caroline Faucher from HMRI's Brain Health Research Program and The University of Newcastle, Australia breaks down the sleep and brain health connection, including why seven hours may be the sweet spot, and what to do if you're not getting there.

With an estimated 446,500 Australians currently living with dementia, and dementia now the leading cause of death for Australian women, understanding the risk factors, including sleep, has never been more important.

Address

1 Kookaburra Cct
New Lambton, NSW
2305

Opening Hours

Monday 8:30am - 5pm
Tuesday 8:30am - 5pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 5pm
Thursday 8:30am - 5pm
Friday 8:30am - 5pm

Telephone

+611300993822

Website

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Category

Giving Hope, Finding Answers

What began in 1998 as a bold vision to improve community wellbeing in the Hunter Region of NSW has today evolved into a world-class institute with 1500 medical researchers, students and support staff striving to prevent, treat and defeat a multitude of serious illnesses. Over 20 years later the health and wellbeing of the community remains at the heart of all we do.

Delivering patient-focused translational research is our major goal, which means seed funding start-up studies, supporting larger scale research projects whilst fostering a flow of information and innovation back and forth between scientists, clinicians and public health professionals. Attracting top health and medical specialists and collaborating with other leading institutes and industries helps to fast-track the provision of new and better health solutions.