ASCA aims to continuously raise awareness, provide information valuable to patients, and support people affected by SCD. Together with the affected communities, we aim to advocate for better services. We have chapters in all major cities across Australia. Our Association is managed by a team of advisors across Australia. ASCA has representatives and volunteers in all states across Australia. Get in touch to be connected with your local state representative.
Meet our advisory members.
Agnes is a mother of four, their youngest child was born with sickle cell anaemia. Agnes is a Registered Nurse / Data Analyst by profession, working in the aged care industry. In 2012, Agnes changed careers from Business to Nursing so that she could understand Sickle Cell Disease ( SCD) and what their child was going through. Agnes also has a bachelor’s degree in Business and Diploma of accounting with experiences in the taxation and banking industries. Agnes is the co-founder of Australian Sickle Cell Advocacy Inc. Her passion to advocate for SCD was as a result of having their youngest child being diagnosed with Sickle Cell Anaemia in 2009. In 2014, Agnes and husband started the SCD awareness Facebook page to support other people affected by this disease. The group was formally registered as a not for profit association in October 2018. Agnes’ passion is to support programs and initiatives that enhance lives of people from disadvantaged backgrounds. She also volunteers her time to different projects which raise funds to support scientific research.
Preston is the founding member for Australian Sickle Cell Advocacy. In 2009 their youngest child was diagnosed with Sickle Cell Disease (SCD). In 2014, Preston and Agnes started the SCD Facebook page to support other people affected by this disease. The group was formally registered as a not for profit association in October 2018. Preston’s professional background is in the fields of Product Development, Aged Care and Mining has given him diverse exposure to the disciplines of Finance, Procurement, Project Management, and General Management. He is a qualified accountant and a Mining Engineer. Preston’s passion to engage in community work to support not profit initiatives. In his spare time Preston like fishing, watching movies and collecting music.
Nathalie is passionate about Technology and its ability to simplify and innovate how humans interact and operate every day. Her roles in Technology have been across the whole Systems Development life cycle, and currently as a Business Analyst focusing on Technology governance, new ways of working, workflow visualization and standards, with the aim to improve quality and align work to business initiatives. Nathalie is a mother of two and is passionate about giving back to the community. In her spare time Natalie enjoys sports like running, viewing art galleries and travelling.
Dr Kalumba is a fellow of Royal Australasian College of Physicians, Consultant Paediatrician and a Clinical Haematologist. He has broad experience in all paediatric conditions including neonatology, growth and development, asthma, infections, eczema, behavioural problems including ADHD & Autism Spectrum Disorders, and in particular specialized in blood disorders. Dr Kalumba trained as a paediatrician at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, in addition to his previous paediatric training including Fellowship with the College of Medicine of South Africa. He undertook further training in Haematology in Melbourne at the Royal Children’s Hospital, Peter Mac Cancer Centre and Melbourne Pathology, including Laboratory Medicine. He is accredited with Cabrini, Jessie McPherson Private Hospital, Waverly Private Hospital, Knox Private Hospital, Peninsula Private Hospital and The Bays Private Hospital. He also works as visiting specialist in numerous hospitals across Australia. Dr Kalumba had also practised paediatrics in various countries including D.R Congo, Zambia, Lesotho and South Africa.
Dr Anthea Greenway is a Paediatric Haematologist at The Royal Children’s Hospital and Monash Medical Centre in Melbourne. She completed a clinical fellowship in SCD at Duke University Medical Centre, North Carolina in 2010. Dr Greenway is the Clinical Lead of the Sickle cell and Haemoglobinopathies service, the clinical lead of the Apheresis service, and chair of the Apheresis Committee at The Royal Children’s Hospital.
Merlin Crossley is Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) at UNSW and Professor of Molecular Biology. He has also worked or studied at the Universities of Melbourne, Oxford, Harvard and Sydney. He has been recognized by numerous awards, including a Rhodes Scholarship and the Australian Academy of Science’s Gottschalk Medal. He has made significant contributions to academic administration, serving as Dean at UNSW since 2010, and previously having been Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research at the University of Sydney from 2006 to 2008.
A/Prof Nada Hamad is a senior staff specialist bone marrow transpalnt, clinical and laboratory haematologist at St Vincent’s hospital in Sydney, where she is also director of the haematology clinical trials unit. She is President of the Bone Marrow Transplant Society of Australia and New Zealand, Chair of the ACI NSW BMT network and Chair of ALLG BMTCT working group. She is a senior lecturer at the University of Sydney and University of NSW. Dr Hamad studied Medicine at the University of Sydney and completed her Haematology training in Sydney. Prior to her career in medicine, she completed a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Forensics, working in this field for a short period of time. She completed two post-graduate fellowships in BMT and lymphoma at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto Canada through the University of Toronto. She has a strong interest in clinical trials, has a specialist certificate in Clinical Research (Oncology) from the University of Melbourne and is an active member of the Australasian Leukaemia and Lymphoma Group (ALLG) as a member of a number of disease group committees. Her clinical research interests are in malignant haematology and bone marrow transplantation.
Australian Sickle Cell Advocacy Inc (ASCA) is a patient advocacy group supporting the rights of people living with Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) as they navigate the healthcare system in Australia. ASCA is a non-profit organisation started in 2014 and officially registered in October 2018. An advocacy group formed to fill the gap of highlighting the rising numbers of sickle cell disease in Australia. Although rare in some part of the world like Australia, sickle cell disease is affecting a lot of people.