Defying the odds – Prof Richard Scolyer

Professor Richard Scolyer is a world-leading pathologist who specialises in the diagnosis and treatment of the deadliest form of skin cancer, melanoma.

He and his colleagues have used immunotherapy to revolutionise the treatment of melanoma and are now applying that knowledge to treat Richard’s own brain cancer, after he was diagnosed in 2023 with incurable glioblastoma.

Richard and his oncologist colleague Prof Georgina Long were named Joint Australians of the Year in January 2024 for their ground-breaking work on melanoma and are on a mission to try to change Australia’s tanning culture.