Australian Story: Apr 1

Next Monday Australian Story goes behind the scenes with the 2024 Australians of the Year as they reach a remarkable milestone, even they never thought possible.

Professors Richard Scolyer and Georgina Long made headlines last year after trialling a groundbreaking protocol they’d devised for melanoma patients on Richard’s incurable brain cancer.

They allowed Australian Story cameras to document their bold approach, as Richard expressed his greatest fears, and Georgina toiled day and night to find a cure.

Now, 10 months on since Richard was first diagnosed, our cameras travel alongside him once more as scientists scan his brain for any signs the aggressive cancer has returned.

“To be able to get this far through now without any recurrence of my tumour I’m blown away. This is not what I expected,” says Richard.

Professor Long says the goal now is to test the treatment on a large scale.

“As a scientist and as a clinician, there is an absolute need to make sure that you do things properly and share that information in a peer-reviewed, proper way,” she says.

They anticipate clinical trials will begin soon.

8pm Monday on ABC.