Professors Shyamali Dharmage and Rebecca Bentley awarded 2025 NHMRC Research Excellence Awards

Professor Shyamali Dharmage and Professor Rebecca Bentley have received NHMRC Research Excellence Awards, which celebrate top-ranked applicants to the National Health and Medical Council’s (NHMRC's) competitive grant schemes.

Announced at a ceremony in Canberra on 31 March, Professor Dharmage received the Elizabeth Blackburn Investigator Grant (Leadership in Public Health Research) Award, and Professor Bentley received the Fiona Stanley Synergy Grant Award.

Professor Dharmage is a world-leading expert in life-course epidemiology of chronic respiratory diseases, and leads the Allergy and Lung Health Unit in the Centre for Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health.

“Being ranked the top Investigator Grant applicant in the Public Health pillar is both an honour and a responsibility,” said Professor Dharmage.

“I see this award not only as recognition of sustained scientific contribution, but as a powerful opportunity to accelerate a prevention-focused agenda that challenges how we think about chronic lung disease in Australia and globally.”

With pre-chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) now recognised as a global health priority and with calls for urgent preventive action, Professor Dharmage’s prize-winning NHMRC grant proposed a 5-year program that targets the critical and ‘silent’ pre-COPD period as a crucial phase where detection and interventions can stop disease progression.

“Healthy lungs are fundamental to healthy ageing, workforce participation and national productivity,” Professor Dharmage said.

“The greatest beneficiaries of this research will be children exposed to early disadvantage, individuals living with asthma, communities whose lungs are affected by environmental risks, and ageing Australians vulnerable to chronic lung disease. By intervening earlier, we can shift outcomes not just for individuals, but for generations.”

Professor Bentley leads the Healthy Housing research program exploring the role of housing and residential location in influencing health. Her research has a particular focus on housing affordability, suitability and security. Her award winning NHMRC Synergy Grant is focussed on addressing the public health challenge of mould in Australian homes.

There are an estimated five million Australian homes affected by poor indoor environmental quality which contributes to chronic illness and reduced wellbeing across Australia.

“Our Synergy program addresses this urgent yet under recognised public health challenge by reducing mould exposure in homes, with a critical focus on people with respiratory conditions and who are immunocompromised,” Professor Bentley said.

“For this sizeable population, exposure prevention is preferrable to treatment given the severity of potential health impacts.”

While still early in its implementation, Professor Bentley’s project will consolidate existing research and collaborate with consumers and industry experts to release clear health standards for homes, moving the narrative towards a healthy housing agenda, and ultimately reducing preventable health conditions.

“Our program is uniting world-leading experts in public health, epidemiology, clinical medicine, architectural science, biostatistics, environmental health and behavioural psychology to deliver real-world impact, reduce healthcare costs, and improve productivity and quality of life for affected individuals,” Professor Bentley said.