2026 Award Winners
TSANZ Research Awards serve to focus research on much-needed areas and support some of Australia’s greatest minds in lung disease research, with the ultimate aim of improving the lives of people affected by lung diseases. We are pleased to support our members careers and ideas through seed funding, feasibility studies, grants in aid, professional development, and travel awards.
At the TSANZSRS 2026 we presented $330,000 worth of research grants and awards which have been supported by the Society and our partners.
TSANZ would like to congratulate the following Award winners. For information on how to apply for next year’s Awards visit the TSANZ website Research and Awards page.
2026 RESPIRATORY RESEARCH EXCELLENCE AWARD WINNERS
| Award | Winner(s) |
| TSANZ Janet Elder International Travel Award – Early Career | Dr Amy Pascoe |
| TSANZ Janet Elder International Travel Award – Early Career | Dr Ryan Mackle |
| TSANZ Janet Elder International Travel Award – Mid Career | Dr Dinh Bui |
| TSANZ Ann Woolcock New Investigator Award Winner | Mr Jack Canning |
| TSANZ Ann Woolcock New Investigator Award Finalists | Mrs Bianca Iacopetta, Miss Laura Dowling, Dr Meera Srinivasan, Mr Rohan Flint, Mrs Sahel Amoozadeh. |
| TSANZ Peter Phelan Research Award | Dr Cassidy Du Berry |
| TSANZ Indigenous Respiratory Nurses Award | Mrs Siji Issac |
| TSANZ Past Presidents Scholarship Award | Dr Timothy Howarth |
| TSANZ Robert Pierce Grant-In-Aid for Indigenous Lung Health | Prof Andre Schultz |
| TSANZ Chiesi Advancing Women in Respiratory Health Award – Early Career Respiratory Professional | Mrs Kelsey Sharrad |
| TSANZ Chiesi Advancing Women in Respiratory Health Award – Mid-Career Respiratory Professional | Dr Elena Schneider-Futschik |
| TSANZ GSK Clinical Research Award | Dr Narelle Cox |
| TSANZ Cure4CF Foundation International Travel Award Early Career | Mr Jack Canning, Dr Kak Ming Ling |
| TSANZ Cure4CF Fellowship | Dr Ayaho Yamamoto, Dr Kak Ming Ling |
2026 SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP AWARD WINNERS
| Award | Winner(s) |
| Funded by Asthma Australia; TSANZ Asthma and Allergy SIG Award | Ms Tamara Blickisdorf for their presentation “Metabolic syndrome and body composition display sex-specific effects on airway inflammation and clinical asthma outcomes.” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Cell, Immunology & Molecular Biology of the Lung SIG Award | Dr Peter Allen for their presentation “Deconvoluting fibrotic niches in IPF lungs using single cell multiomics.“ |
| Funded by Chiesi; TSANZ Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease SIG Award | Dr Maraed Rosa for their presentation “Lung Cancer Screening reveals a high prevalence of undiagnosed COPD and Pre-COPD.” |
| Funded by Cure4CF; TSANZ Cystic Fibrosis SIG Award | A/Prof Elena Schneider-Futschik for their presentation “Postnatal CFTR modulator exposure and eye morphology in DF508 CFTR rats.” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Evidence Based Medicine SIG Award | Dr Sheetal Deshpande for their presentation “Hybrid model of care for patients with ILD.” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Interventional Pulmonology SIG Award | Dr Vincent Yip for their presentation “The second pleural effusion rapid analysis using urine dipstick study.” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Lung Cancer SIG Award | Dr Ingrid Cox for their presentation “Disparities in lung cancer survival in Tasmania: Insights from population-level data.“ |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Bill Musk Occupational & Environmental Lung Disease SIG Award | Dr Kirsten Bennett for their presentation “The association of tobacco exposure with non malignant asbestos related disease.” |
| Funded by ChestRad; TSANZ Orphan Lung Diseases, Lung Transplant, Interstitial Lung Disease and Pulmonary Vascular Disease (OLIV) SIG Award | Mr Levi Hockey for their presentation “AI interpretation of broncho-alveolar lavage cytology for personalised pulmonary fibrosis care.“ |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ ASM Best Poster Award | A/Prof Rebecca Disler for their presentation “Holding the conversation open: Exploring clinician views on VAD-related end-of-life dialogue and system gaps in lung, heart, and kidney care”.” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Peter van Asperen Paediatric SIG Award | Dr Laura Coleman for their presentation “Effect of age on immune response to viral infection.” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Physiotherapy SIG Award | Mr Mario Burillo Lafuente for their presentation “Ready to work in the challenges of pulmonary rehabilitation: Experience delivering community-based student supported pulmonary rehabilitation.” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Primary Care SIG Award | Mrs Jessica Walsh for their presentation “PURE PRIME implementation of pulmonary rehab in primary care.” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ John Reid Pulmonary Physiology and Sleep SIG Award | Dr Jennifer Hudson for their presentation “Obstructive sleep apnea and primary snoring is associated with oropharyngeal dysbisos and a compositional imbalance in the gut.” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Respiratory Infectious Diseases SIG Award | Prof Guy Marks for their presentation “Ciclesonide for COVID19.” |
| Funded by Chiesi; TSANZ Respiratory Nurses SIG Award | Mrs Brooke Kyle for their presentation “Evaluating the impact of nurse clinic for post emergency department asthma and cope patients a retrospective audit..” |
| Funded by TSANZ; TSANZ Tobacco and Related Substances SIG Award | Dr Carolyn Wang for their presentation “Cannabis smoking: its impact on small airway epithelial structure and association with emphysema and respiratory symptoms.” |
| Funded by TSANZ: Symptom Support and Palliative Care SIG Award | Dr Amy Pascoe for their presentation “Consensus palliative care referral criteria for people with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis an international Delphi study.” |
2026 TSANZ Awards by Nomination
TSANZ 2026 President’s Award: A/Prof Hamish Graham
TSANZ Research Medal: Prof Sarath Ranganathan and Prof Vanessa McDonald
TSANZ Medal for Education and Training: Prof Jane Bourke and Dr Christopher Worsnop
TSANZ Society Medal: Prof Matthew Peters
TSANZ Advocacy Medal: Dr Stuart Jones