Parkinson’s NSW hosted the 2026 Parkinson’s Research Symposium on 31 March in Sydney. It was attended by more than 80 members of the Parkinson’s community as well as medical and research professionals.

A breakfast session was run for medical and scientific participants early in the morning. It was led by Professor Carolyn Sue AM who is the Kinghorn Chair of Neurodegeneration at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA), Professor of Neurology at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and Director of Neurosciences at Prince of Wales Hospital (POWH), and the Chair of the National Parkinson’s Alliance.

Speakers at the breakfast included:

• Professor Glenda Halliday, a career neuroscientist specialising in neurodegeneration and a Fellow of the National Health & Medical Research Council (NHMRC). She discussed new tests for Parkinson’s disease.
• Professor Grant Dewson, Head of the Walter and Eliza Hall Parkinson’s Disease Research Centre that brings together research labs with Movement Disorders clinicians and a passionate Parkinson’s advocacy team. He spoke on targeting neuronal cell death machinery in Parkinson’s.
• Associate Professor Florin Gandor, a neurologist and movement disorders specialist with a focus on Parkinson’s disease and its treatment in the advanced stages. He addressed the topic of laryngopharyngeal pathology in Parkinsonian syndromes.
• Rachael Mackinnon, Clinical Nurse Consultant at Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA). The theme of her presentation was Beyond the Patient – Health professionals’ role in carer support.

The full day session of the Symposium was opened by Mary Kay Walker, CEO of Parkinson’s NSW. She introduced Andy Esteban, Chair of the Board of Parkinson’s NSW who made opening remarks around the grim statistics which make research into Parkinson’s more important than ever before.

These include the fact that Parkinson’s is now described as a pandemic. It is the fastest growing neurological disorder globally and a major driver of disability, falls and hospital use.

In New South Wales an estimated 68,850 people are living with Parkinson’s. That’s around 31% of the national total.

For every person diagnosed, at least two family members or carers are directly affected, meaning more than 206 thousand people in NSW live with the daily consequences of this disease.

Parkinson’s is more common than many major cancers combined yet attracts far less government investment. That’s a major challenge for both researchers in this field and service providers like Parkinson’s NSW.

Andy Esteban was followed by Richard Wylie, Chief Executive Officer of the new  National Parkinson’s Alliance. He spoke about the structure, role and mission of the Alliance.

Professor Glenda Halliday AC, a leading neuroscientist was up next. She discussed new international programs uncovering the roots of Parkinson’s.

Harnessing collaboration to advance new Parkinson’s therapies and diagnostics was then presented by research scientist Professor Grant Dewson.

Ashley Young, a Clinical Neuropsychologist, shifted the audience’s attention to mental health when she took the floor to discuss living well with Parkinson’s disease.

Craig Hewat, Director and Physiotherapist of Engage VR Rehab, then gave a presentation on how digital health and Virtual Reality are shaping a new world in allied health.

Following that presentation, a trio of speakers explained innovations in home-based swallowing management using a technology application called BiSSkApp. The presenters were Speech Pathologists Colleen Kerr and Christina Samy of Optimal Speech Pathology and Anneke Duyvestyn, a Clinical Specialist from Swaltech in New Zealand.

Following a lunch break Dr Erica Rose Jeffrey PhD, Founding Teacher and Director of Dance for Parkinson’s Australia re-energised the audience by leading them through some seated dance movements.

To round out the day’s formal presentations, Dr Diana Zhang, Founder & CEO of Preview Health spoke on Unlocking Precision Brain Health Care with Artificial Intelligence.

The Symposium then concluded with a Q&A session involving audience interaction with all of the keynote speakers.                                 

This Research Symposium was generously sponsored by an AbbVie Foundation grant.

AbbVie discovers and delivers innovative medicines and solutions that enhance people’s lives.

Images (L-R)

Andy Esteban, Chair of Parkinson’s NSW

Professor Glenda Halliday

Clinical Neuropsychologist Ashley Young