Professor Fiona Stanley, a renowned epidemiologist, has reflected on 35 years of groundbreaking child health research in Western Australia. Speaking to ABC Radio Perth, she highlighted the journey of the Telethon Kids Institute, which she founded in 1990. The institute began in Perth's former children's hospital, Princess Margaret Hospital for Children, with a rent of just $1 per year.
Professor Stanley credited her colleagues and the community for the institute's success. 'How lucky am I to have come back to WA with all my overseas training experience to really set up something which has given me so much joy,' she said. The team researched a wide range of issues affecting children, including asthma, diabetes, cancer, birth defects, and mental health challenges like suicide.
One of the institute's landmark discoveries was the link between folate deficiency in pregnant women and neural tube defects such as spina bifida. This led to a 75% reduction in birth defects through dietary improvements. Another key finding was the hygiene hypothesis, which rewrote understanding of asthma and allergy causes by suggesting early exposure to dirt can protect against allergies.
Professor Stanley stressed the importance of early childhood health. 'If you get it right early, you've got the possibility of turning the whole of society around,' she said. Her work has been honoured with the naming of Fiona Stanley Hospital in 2014. She described her career as 'a phenomenal ride' and felt privileged to have led such impactful research.
