Reception in support of the Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia

Chief of Mission and Head of Research, Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia and President, Union for International Cancer Control, Professor Jeff Dunn AO; Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia Chairman, Adjunct Associate Professor Steve Callister and Director, Distinguished Emeritus Professor Judith Clements AC; Cancer Australia CEO, Professor Dorothy Keefe; Cancer Council Queensland Chair, Dr Anita Green and Head of Research Professor Joanne Aitken; distinguished guests; ladies and gentlemen.

I begin by acknowledging the original custodians of the lands around Brisbane, the Turrbal and Jagera people, and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and to any First Nations people here today.

Graeme and I warmly welcome you all to Government House. As Joint Patrons of the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, we are delighted to be honouring a very special Queenslander, Professor Jeff Dunn AO, and celebrating his remarkable contributions to reducing the burden of cancer on people in this country, and throughout the world.

I know everyone in this room joins us in congratulating Jeff on his recent appointment to the role of President of the Union for International Cancer Control.

As the first Queenslander to ever be elected to this esteemed global leadership position, Jeff has been recognised both for his exceptional professional expertise, and for his personal commitment to driving life-enhancing, life-saving change—a determination only strengthened by his own lived experience with the disease.

Jeff’s approach comes from the understanding that cancer does not just affect the physical, nor do its impacts stop once treatment is complete.

His work over a 30-year-long career has extended our ability to prevent, detect, and improve cancer treatments, while, importantly, ensuring the focus remains on the individual and the significant challenges diagnosis and treatment can cause.

This latest achievement for Jeff follows three decades of close work with the Union for International Cancer Control in various capacities, alongside his continuing role as Chief of Mission and Head of Research with the Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia, and his involvement with the University of Southern Queensland, and West Moreton Health.

During my term as Chief Health Officer, we worked together to implement reforms to improve cancer control in Queensland, and so I know that Jeff brings with him a deep belief that individuals can make a real and significant difference in this quest.

Cancer is a major health issue in our country, with the expectation that one in two Australians will be diagnosed with some form of the disease by the age of 85.  Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in Queensland, with nearly 4,300 new cases identified each year.

Such confronting statistics make the work of community-based organisations such as the Prostate Cancer Foundation even more vital, and I am tremendously proud of their efforts—over the past 27 years—in promoting prostate cancer research, awareness and support in this State, and across the country.

The vision to see “a future where no man dies of prostate cancer” takes innovation and tenacity. It relies on the efforts of many, and it also requires courageous leadership.

So tonight, I applaud the Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia for its unwavering dedication to building hope, and its team of volunteers and supporters for supporting the organisation with such passion.

Graeme and I would now like to take this opportunity to present the Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia with a Certificate of Joint Vice-Regal Patronage, if I could please ask Adjunct Associate Professor Steve Callister and Professor Jeff Dunn AO to come forward and receive on the Foundation’s behalf.