Meg Tudehope
Q&A with Meg Tudehope
President of the Denim Committee, Member of the Fundraising and Marketing Committee of the CMRI Board, and a Major Donor
How did you first hear about CMRI or Jeans for Jeans?
I heard about CMRI as a result of Jeans for Genes Day in 1994. I was a graduate at Ernst & Young Consulting, and I remember vividly that our very conservative dress code was tossed aside for one day a year in August for Jeans for Genes Day. It was about this time that a group of my friends started to attend the annual Jeans for Genes Day Ball and Celebrity Jeans Auction.
Can you tell us a little about yourself and your family?
I was born in South Africa after my father was transferred to Pietermaritzburg to work on an engineering project. Our family returned to Australia in 1974 when I was 2 years old. We lived in Bathurst, a country town in Western NSW. My mother was the only female GP and obstetrician in town at that time. My mother was the true country doctor, on call 24 hours, 365 days a year. I would often wake up to find that my mum had been called out to a house call or maternity wards during the night.
Being a country doctor’s daughter, a large proportion of our friends were also mum’s patients. We saw a lot and heard a lot. I knew if a child was sent to “Sydney” or “Camperdown” it wasn’t good news, and it was often accompanied by a serious phone conversation punctuated with tears. I remember mum explaining to me once that diseases like leukemia are often due to an individual’s “make up”. Today I understand that as their genes. It was only later that I learnt Camperdown Kids, Sydney’s only Children’s Hospital, was relocated to Westmead and renamed Westmead Children’s Hospital and that CMRI was born out of Camperdown Children’s Hospital and continues today in Westmead.
Why do you support CMRI? Why is medical research important to you?
I have always been brought up with the ethos “to give before you receive” and that health is not always a given and at any time something can just go wrong. I grew up reading medical journals at the breakfast table that would focus on drug trials, new surgical techniques, and new diagnostic tests. As a result, I just seemed to have an innate understanding that medical research was important, as it helped doctors to help their patients.
I, like most people, couldn’t have imagined the global pandemic we are living through today could really happen. It sounds naïve, but it always seemed like pandemics were behind us, in “the olden days” when medicine wasn’t as advanced. So COVID-19 came as a curve ball, it seemed unbelievable that there could be no answers, no test, no effective treatment, and no vaccine. What became quickly apparent was that for some epidemiologists around the world, this is what they have been preparing for their whole career, this is their job to be ready “just in case”. It is hard not be feel eternally grateful. In those early days, I have to admit it crossed my mind how lucky I was that COVID-19 was a global issue, we were all beneficiaries of a solution.
In stark contrast it made me consider patients with rare diseases and the scientists working tirelessly to find solutions for them. Whilst scientists developing COVID-19 vaccines will be beneficiaries of their own research, scientists at CMRI continue their life’s work across a kaleidoscope of genetic diseases including cancers that should any of us be given a diagnosis tomorrow, we would be looking to them for our miracle cure.
So, in a nutshell, I see medical research as the greatest insurance for our health today and for future generations.
Are you working on any initiatives this year?
As a member of the Marketing and Fundraising Committee at CMRI, my key focus this year has been on developing closer relationships between potential donors and CMRI. In doing this, I have been developing what we are calling a “Circle of Difference” to bring passionate philanthropists into the CMRI fold through intimate evenings of education and discussion.
What area of research fascinates you most?
There are so many areas that fascinate me. The use of viruses for gene editing to correct genetic defects is mind-blowing, as is the growing of patient organ cells to trial the effects of different medications before they reach patients. However, I am particularly passionate about finding the right cancer treatments faster to minimise death and collateral damage from often a plethora of treatments with the hope that one will work. CMRI’s ProCan project is beyond inspiring. I remember when it was launched 5 years ago, and now, we are within 2 years of being able to diagnose a cancer’s protein make up and prescribe the most effective drug for that particular protein. It will be a true game changer in cancer treatment for cancer patients young and old.
What would you want to make sure people know about CMRI?
Today there are so many worthy causes to support, and everyone has their own perspective of what is worthwhile. What is important for people to know is that CMRI has 63 years of delivering life changing outcomes. CMRI’s founder, Sir Lorimer Dods, was a visionary who believed children should no longer be treated medically as small adults but as their own category.
Since its foundation, CMRI has been key to revolutionising children’s medicine. In the 1960’s and 1970’s, CMRI formed Australia’s first research unit for newborns, introduced the use of humidicribs for premature babies, developed new microsurgery techniques, progressed research into Cystic Fibrosis and introduced the Rubella (German Measles) vaccine. In the 1980’s, CMRI was responsible for diagnosing and educating the Australian population about Foetal Alcohol Syndrome. The 1990’s saw the development of a dedicated Gene Therapy Unit that conducted the first gene therapy trial in Australia in 2002 and since then has leveraged gene therapy to find cures for a range of genetic diseases and helped deliver the cure for Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA).
I also feel it is important that people know that at CMRI’s helm as Director is world leading scientist, Professor Roger Reddel AO, who ensures every cent at CMRI is put where it adds most value.
What has been the biggest surprise or takeaway about genetic disease and cancer since you began supporting CMRI?
For me the biggest takeaway is the prevalence of genetic diseases. 1 in 20 children in Australia are living with a genetic disease. Given the trend of women having children later in life, one can assume this number is more likely to increase than decrease in future generations.
What would you say to someone who was considering supporting research at CMRI?
When I have been approached by people considering CMRI, I always invite them to visit the laboratories in Westmead. Once you have spent time inside these walls, there is no doubt that your patronage is not only highly valued but you will leave with absolute certainty that you are not only contributing financially but you are contributing to improving the lives of 1 in 20 children living with a genetic disease such as cancer.
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If you would like to join Meg by discussing how your support can make a difference finding treatment and cures for children’s genetic diseases and cancer, please contact our Senior Relationship Manager, Greg Pulscher any time. [email protected] or 0417 565 997.