Genetics

Medical conditions with a genetic cause are common, accounting for around 50% of paediatric hospital admissions. Genetic research is vital to the diagnosis and treatment of genetic disorders, infectious diseases and non-communicable diseases. Genetic research studies human DNA to find out what genes and environmental factors contribute to diseases in our society, with the goal of preventing disease from occurring.

There are over 7,000 rare conditions, collectively accounting for a high proportion of hospital admissions, chronic diseases and deaths in infancy and childhood. New genomic technologies provide the potential to avoid the often long and difficult diagnosis journey that families face, improve early intervention and reduce the associated health care burden on families and the community.

We build our research on expertise in a range of areas and a mix of laboratory, clinical and public health research, epidemiology and genetic screening. These, combined with the clinical and laboratory expertise at Victorian Clinical Genetics Services, mean we translate research into clinical practice, with immediate benefits to patients and families.