UNIVERSITY of Newcastle researcher Dr Aleona Swegen, a member of the Hunter Medical Research Institute’s Infertility and Reproduction Research Program, is driving a breakthrough in fertility treatment.
Dr Sewgan has secured $200,000 from the inaugural Newcastle Permanent Innovation Accelerator Program for her technology, SpermSafe.
Dr Swegen created SpermSafe as a storage medium that improves survival and motility while reducing DNA damage during in vitro fertilisation (IVF) procedures.
The technology aims to boost pregnancy success rates, particularly for couples who have endured the financial and emotional toll of repeated and unsuccessful IVF attempts.
“Being named the inaugural winner gives me the resources and support needed to move SpermSafe beyond the lab and into the real world,” Dr Swegen said.
“This prize will allow me to navigate the regulatory pathway and deliver a product that could help countless families realise their dream of having a baby.”
One in every 16 babies in Australia is born via IVF.
For women aged over 35, the figure rises to one in 10, as reported by Professor Georgina Chambers, director of UNSW’s National Perinatal Epidemiology and Statistics Unit.
The Fertility Society of Australia and New Zealand reports that one in six couples in the region experiences infertility, underscoring the need for new and effective treatment options.
By Sis HIGGINS
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