Former Australian of the Year shares grim health update amid cancer fight
Former Australian of the Year Professor Richard Scolyer has provided a grim health update in his battle with incurable brain cancer.
Professor Scolyer, 58, shared an MRI scan with his social media followers that shows further progress of glioblastoma.
Glioblastoma is an aggressive type of brain cancer that arises from astrocytes, the supportive cells in the brain.
"Whilst this may not be the best direction to be heading with my changes, amazingly (to me) I still seem keen to keep living, loving and having fun, whenever possible," he said.
"I feel like there are quite a few people on my team (including my family & friends) and they make me happy & proud!"
He recently celebrated the 21st birthday of his eldest daughter Emily in May, describing her as "an amazing daughter" whom he "loves so much".
The Launceston-born pathologist was a joint 2024 Australian of the Year with Professor Georgina Long. Both are co-medical directors at the Melanoma Institute Australia.
He was recognised for volunteering for therapy administered by Dr Long and other colleagues, which helped develop a revolutionary world-first melanoma treatment.
He is also the first brain cancer patient to undertake innovative pre-surgery combination immunotherapy that was credited with saving his life.
READ MORE: Nominate for 2026 Australian of the Year
Former Australian of the Year Professor Richard Scolyer has provided a grim health update in his battle with incurable brain cancer.
Professor Scolyer, 58, shared an MRI scan with his social media followers that shows further progress of glioblastoma.
Glioblastoma is an aggressive type of brain cancer that arises from astrocytes, the supportive cells in the brain.
"Whilst this may not be the best direction to be heading with my changes, amazingly (to me) I still seem keen to keep living, loving and having fun, whenever possible," he said.
"I feel like there are quite a few people on my team (including my family & friends) and they make me happy & proud!"
He recently celebrated the 21st birthday of his eldest daughter Emily in May, describing her as "an amazing daughter" whom he "loves so much".
The Launceston-born pathologist was a joint 2024 Australian of the Year with Professor Georgina Long. Both are co-medical directors at the Melanoma Institute Australia.
He was recognised for volunteering for therapy administered by Dr Long and other colleagues, which helped develop a revolutionary world-first melanoma treatment.
He is also the first brain cancer patient to undertake innovative pre-surgery combination immunotherapy that was credited with saving his life.
READ MORE: Nominate for 2026 Australian of the Year
Former Australian of the Year Professor Richard Scolyer has provided a grim health update in his battle with incurable brain cancer.
Professor Scolyer, 58, shared an MRI scan with his social media followers that shows further progress of glioblastoma.
Glioblastoma is an aggressive type of brain cancer that arises from astrocytes, the supportive cells in the brain.
"Whilst this may not be the best direction to be heading with my changes, amazingly (to me) I still seem keen to keep living, loving and having fun, whenever possible," he said.
"I feel like there are quite a few people on my team (including my family & friends) and they make me happy & proud!"
He recently celebrated the 21st birthday of his eldest daughter Emily in May, describing her as "an amazing daughter" whom he "loves so much".
The Launceston-born pathologist was a joint 2024 Australian of the Year with Professor Georgina Long. Both are co-medical directors at the Melanoma Institute Australia.
He was recognised for volunteering for therapy administered by Dr Long and other colleagues, which helped develop a revolutionary world-first melanoma treatment.
He is also the first brain cancer patient to undertake innovative pre-surgery combination immunotherapy that was credited with saving his life.
READ MORE: Nominate for 2026 Australian of the Year
Former Australian of the Year Professor Richard Scolyer has provided a grim health update in his battle with incurable brain cancer.
Professor Scolyer, 58, shared an MRI scan with his social media followers that shows further progress of glioblastoma.
Glioblastoma is an aggressive type of brain cancer that arises from astrocytes, the supportive cells in the brain.
"Whilst this may not be the best direction to be heading with my changes, amazingly (to me) I still seem keen to keep living, loving and having fun, whenever possible," he said.
"I feel like there are quite a few people on my team (including my family & friends) and they make me happy & proud!"
He recently celebrated the 21st birthday of his eldest daughter Emily in May, describing her as "an amazing daughter" whom he "loves so much".
The Launceston-born pathologist was a joint 2024 Australian of the Year with Professor Georgina Long. Both are co-medical directors at the Melanoma Institute Australia.
He was recognised for volunteering for therapy administered by Dr Long and other colleagues, which helped develop a revolutionary world-first melanoma treatment.
He is also the first brain cancer patient to undertake innovative pre-surgery combination immunotherapy that was credited with saving his life.
READ MORE: Nominate for 2026 Australian of the Year
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Jane was eventually found to have had a massive brain bleed, and surgery to drain it was unsuccessful. Morris and her daughters, who had travelled from across the state to see Jane, switched off her life support at 5.55pm on August 24 in time for sunset, which Morris says was her favourite time of day. Ten months on, Morris is yet to receive Jane's official cause of death, but the SAC1 report and her discharge summary both note a blood vessel deformity known as an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) found in her brain after her death may have been the source of the bleed. Conflicting reports AVMs are a tangling of arteries and veins that can disrupt the flow of blood and cause internal bleeding. According to the Sydney Children's Hospital, AVMs usually form during development or shortly after birth. They are often only found if they start bleeding, but can be detected using medical imaging techniques like MRIs, CT scans and angiograms. 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Who is going to take notice of me at 10 o'clock at night?' she says. Morris' concerns around the Aishwarya CARE call system concerned family advocate Suresh Rajan, who also helped Aishwarya's parents in the aftermath of their daughter's death. 'When the Aishwarya CARE call was implemented, the then-health minister, now premier, wrote to us to advise that the system was to 'change the culture of the WA Health Service so that patients and caregivers were listened to',' he says. 'It would appear that four years after Aishwarya's death that nothing has changed.' What needs to change Morris is furious at the handling of Jane's care and subsequent investigations, including the SAC1 report, which suggested her death was not preventable. She says she did not have the opportunity to address the panel conducting the report, nor respond to its findings. She wants Hammat's support to launch a coronial inquest into her daughter's care and death and is demanding a raft of changes in hospital accountability. These include more accountability of individual doctor decision-making, laws to force doctors to act on observations and concerns of parents, establishing an independent medical investigation body and more transparency around investigations. 'Parents are right' Health Minister Meredith Hammat, who attended Jane's funeral, confirmed she would reach out to Morris to discuss her concerns, but would not say whether she supported her request for a coronial inquest. '[Jane] was an incredible little girl and loved by many people in our community,' she said. 'I've spoken with Sharyn many times over the years, most recently just a few weeks ago. Sharyn is a strong woman and a fearless advocate, and I'm sorry for her loss. 'I won't discuss the details of our meetings, but it is my firm view that parents and guardians should be listened to. 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