Doors open at Walter and Eliza Hall upgraded $185m facility

The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute has thrown open the doors on its newly upgraded $185 million research facility in Melbourne today, adding substantial research capabilities to its already impressive repertoire.

With the opening of the expanded facility the total floor space at the institute has been doubled and an additional 270 researchers have been recruited since the upgrade started in 2008. A further 200 staff and students are in the process of being recruited now.

The facility will include the Ian Potter Centre for Genomics and Personalised Medicine, which is the first in Australia to be dedicated to personalised medicine.

Another section includes the Clinical Translation Centre, which is tasked with translating research into genuine therapeutic outcomes that save lives. The upgraded building includes a bridge to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, facilitating access by staff to both facilities.

There is also an insectary, which will harbour thousands of malaria-infected mosquites for research into the diesease, along with a blood donor registry, which can take blood from any person, including people normally excluded from giving blood, such as those who have had potential exposure to mad cow disease, to be used for research into cancer, heart disease and brain diseases.

The upgraded facility was opened at midday today by Victorian Premier, Mr Ted Baillieu, the Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing, Ms Catherine King and Professor Doug Hilton, the head of WEHI.

Victorian Premier, Mr Ted Baillieu, the Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing, Ms Catherine King.

They were also joined by a group of cancer survivors who benefited from the discovery of hormones called colony-stimulating factors (CSFs) made at the institute 25 years ago by Professor Don Metcalf. CSFs are used to increase dangerously low white blood cell levels in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy to help them fight infection, and are also used to collect blood stem cells for bone marrow transplants.

The $185million redevelopment was funded through major contributions from the Victorian and Australian governments, The Atlantic Philanthropies and a number of philanthropic organisations and individuals.