A record-breaking $30 million in research grants has been awarded across 69 projects aimed at finding a cure for motor neurone disease (MND), with the funding surge driven by an extraordinary outpouring of public support following the death of AFL icon and former Australian of the Year Neale Daniher in May. Daniher, who co-founded the charity Fight MND in 2014, lived with the condition for 13 years before his passing.
A Legacy That Continues to Drive MND Research
Fight MND, the organisation Daniher helped establish, has announced the largest funding round in its history. The grants span projects in multiple cities, covering areas from early disease detection to experimental drug therapies. The scale of giving after Daniher's death made the record round possible, reflecting the broad community affection he inspired throughout his public battle with MND.
Governor-General Sam Mostyn, herself a participant in the iconic Big Freeze fundraising event, met with researchers in Sydney as part of the announcement. She expressed optimism that the investment would one day yield a cure.
"I think it's in Neale's memory that one day we'll be able to say that the money raised by good people all around the country, great communities, will find that cure," Mostyn said.
Sleep Disturbances, Cell Signals and Eye Disease Drugs Among Research Focus Areas
The 69 funded projects span a diverse range of scientific approaches, reflecting the complexity of MND and the many avenues researchers believe could lead to a breakthrough.
In Sydney, Associate Professor Emma Devenney has received a grant to investigate whether disrupted sleep patterns could serve as an early indicator of MND, potentially before irreversible symptoms emerge.
"We're really looking to see how we can identify this disease before people develop symptoms that are irreversible," Devenney said.
In Brisbane, Daniher's widow Jan Daniher met with Associate Professor Shyuan Ngo, whose research will focus on the communication signals between cells. Ngo hopes to isolate the specific signals responsible for driving MND so they can be directly targeted.
"We're trying to figure out whether or not we can pick out the signals that are causing MND, so that we can target those signals," Ngo said.
In East Melbourne, former Melbourne Demons captain Nathan Jones, who was coached by Daniher during his playing career, visited the Centre for Eye Research alongside Professor Peter Williams. Williams' team has been developing drugs designed to halt optic nerve degeneration in glaucoma patients, and believes those same drugs may prove effective against MND.
"We've been developing drugs for glaucoma to stop optic nerve degeneration, and the drugs that we're developing here should be effective in MND as well," Williams said.
Jones described the potential crossover as a genuine reason for hope. "This could be a path forward, which is so exciting," he said.
Jan Daniher: Neale Would Be Watching Every Step
For Jan Daniher, the record funding round represents the continuation of everything her husband worked towards after his diagnosis. She said she believed Neale would have been deeply moved by the response from researchers and the broader community alike.
"I think he'd be up there with a big smile on his face, but he'd be watching every step of the way, don't worry about that," she said.
The Fight MND grants represent one of the most significant single investments into MND research in Australian history, and scientists say the breadth of projects funded gives the field its best-ever chance of delivering meaningful treatments, and ultimately a cure, for a disease that remains without one.
