Mesothelioma UK and The Asbestos and Dust Diseases Research Institute, based in Sydney Australia, have joined together to establish the Commonwealth Mesothelioma Research Network (CMRN).
A group of our Australian colleagues from the CMRN will be joining the team at Mesothelioma UK in October to spend a week in the UK including attending Patient and Carer Day and a charity ball, hosted by mesothelioma patient, David Staley.
The CMRN will seek to:
- directly increase expert nursing care for those suffering with mesothelioma (caused by asbestos exposure)
- Develop dedicated international research programmes
- Increase asbestos education and awareness
- Share clinical trial expertise
The Asbestos and Dust Diseases Research Institute in Sydney Australia is the World Health Organisation (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Elimination of Asbestos Related Disease. It has a dedicated, state-of-the art research laboratory; Australia’s only mesothelioma biobank; specialist nurses who provide patient phone support, and it conducts training on mesothelioma identification and treatment across lower income countries globally.
Each year, over 250,000 people die from asbestos-related diseases globally and this is a large reason why we are coming together to use our collective expertise to make change happen. The UK and Australia have the highest incidences of mesothelioma in the world.
Asbestos diseases are difficult to diagnose and without global bans on asbestos, many low to middle income commonwealth countries are in serious danger of having their populations succumb to mesothelioma. Without any awareness of this cancer, there is no skill to diagnose it – meaning it is spreading silently.
Mesothelioma UK provides a range of charity support and information services but the ‘tour de force’ is a team of nurses, based across the country, each one embedded in the NHS and highly skilled experts in all matters relating to mesothelioma. These nurses are dedicated to improving care, experience and outcomes for those living with mesothelioma. In contrast, Australia does not have one community mesothelioma specialist nurse and the CMRN will remedy that.
ADDRI has a proven track record in delivering international training to healthcare professionals on mesothelioma and asbestos-related diseases and developing high impact research. Currently, it is working across south east Asia, as well as Columbia, where asbestos was only banned in 2021.
Mesothelioma UK works closely with the International Thoracic Oncology Nurses Forum and the International Mesothelioma Interest Group. The CEO, Liz Darlison MBE, is a Clinical Advisor to a charity focused on asbestos legacy in South Africa.
The work of both charities relies on resources and funding from committed philanthropists. It is the Biaggio Signorelli Foundation that will fund the collaboration between Mesothelioma UK and ADDRI, with a pledge of $1million made to this project.
Mr Biaggio Signorelli arrived in Sydney in 1954 from a small farming village in Sicily. In 2007 at the age of 70 he was diagnosed with mesothelioma and passed within eight months of diagnosis. His family established the Biaggio Signorelli Foundation (BSF) shortly afterwards and have dedicated their foundation to raising awareness and funds to eradicate asbestos-related disease ever since.
