Please join this ZOOM ONLY event presented by the Rotary Club of Sydney.

Discussing the upcoming Sydney MS MegaSwim in our Homebush Olympic pool, and the impact of fundraising for Australians living with MS, the Rotary Club of Sydney is pleased to welcome Mr Rohan Greenland, the CEO of MS Australia and Dr Julia Morahan, BMedSc (Hons) PhD, Head of MS Research.

Rohan & Julia will update us on developments with MS. How close we are to a cure and the role of MS Australia in assisting those diagnosed with MS.

Rohan commenced as the CEO of MS Australia in December 2020. He has extensive background in public health matters having previously served as CEO of Palliative Care Australia. Rohan also previously worked in senior advocacy roles at the National Heart Foundation for more than a decade; was Director Public Affairs at the Australian Medical Association; and was a political adviser to Australian national and territory ministers. Rohan is also a former journalist for the Canberra Times.

Dr Julia Morahan oversees the research funding and coordinating activities of MS Australia. This includes the MS Australia competitive grant program, national MS research collaborations, and commissioned research projects. She also oversees the communication of the latest MS research activities to MS Australia stakeholders, donors, and the broader MS community.

Julia has a Bachelor of Medical Science from the University of Sydney and a PhD in Neurology and Genetics undertaken at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney. Following her PhD, which investigated the neurodegenerative condition motor neuron disease (MND), Julia was funded by MND Australia to undertake a postdoctoral fellowship to look at genetic and environmental factors in the development of the disease.

In 2009, Julia switched her focus to MS and became the first recipient of a joint MS Research Australia – MS UK Fellowship, to work at the University of Oxford which was supported by the Macquarie Group Foundation. Upon Julia’s return to Sydney in 2012 she joined MS Research Australia.

Multiple Sclerosis MS

MS is the most common acquired chronic neurological disease affecting young adults, often between the ages of 20 to 40. MS impacts three times more women than men.

As yet, there is no cure. There is also no known single cause of MS, but many genetic and environmental factors have been shown to contribute to its development.

Symptoms can include a loss of motor function e.g. walking and hand and arm function, loss of sensation, pain, vision changes, and changes to thinking and memory.