Championing the Consumer Voice in Health and Medical Research
19 Nov 2025
After a successful career in banking, David transitioned to roles including non-executive director positions and voluntary work in disability services. His lived experiences led him to join the WEHI Consumer Program, collaborating with scientists to support research into better treatments.
David has applied his finance expertise to assist with grant applications and plays a key role in the GLIMMER project, which aims to improve survival and quality of life for patients with glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer.
“Consumers bring lived experience to research. We advocate not just for individual patients, but for the broader community. Highlighting the impact of potential treatments motivates researchers and ensures patient-centered outcomes.”
David stresses the importance of initiatives like the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) in enabling breakthroughs in challenging areas such as brain cancer.
“Being involved as a consumer is incredibly rewarding. Seeing the work of researchers gives hope that many diseases currently deemed incurable may one day be treatable—or even cured.”
Source: WEHI / MRFF
