Explore our ongoing studies and trials actively seeking participants, sorted by our research themes below.
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Brain Health studies
AMSLS collects real-life data from people living with MS.
It is a survey-based research study that has been running since 2002 and now has about 2500 people completing research surveys each year.
The data collected is used by policymakers and MS medical and support services to create positive change and improve the lives of people with MS.
But for the data to have the most impact, the AMSLS needs as many participants as possible.
Become an AMSLS Study participant
The AMSLS is one of MS Australia’s collaborative research platforms; a partnership between MS Australia and the Menzies Institute for Medical Research.
The Love Your Brain study is now closed.
Our Cardiovascular Research Flagship team are now analysing the results from the Love Your Brain trial.
Later in 2026 we will launch a new massive online open course (MOOC) which builds on the findings of the Love Your Brain study to reduce the risk of stroke.
To find out when our MOOC will be launched, keep an eye on this website and the Menzie’s Facebook page.
The STOP-MS trial will test whether antiviral drugs can slow disability progression in people with progressive MS.
Recent landmark studies have confirmed the requirement for the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection in the development of MS, before the earliest signs of nerve damage and years before MS onset. Treating EBV infection or its downstream effects on the immune system presents exciting possibilities for completely new ways to treat MS.
The STOP-MS trial will test two antiviral drugs that are already approved in Australia to treat other viruses but are also effective against EBV in the laboratory. These drugs will be tested against a placebo.
This two-stage trial will first test which antiviral drug controls EBV infection more effectively. The more effective of the two drugs will then be taken into Stage 2, to test its effectiveness in slowing disability progression.
Interested?
Register your interest and find out if you're eligible to participate through MS Trial Screen.
OR
We are collecting blood samples to better understand the genetic factors involved in Parkinson’s disease.
By taking part, you will be helping to build a resource that supports researchers internationally in improving diagnosis, understanding disease progression, and developing new treatments.
Who can take part?
We are inviting adults living in Tasmania, including:
- People diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease
- People with conditions related to Parkinson’s (including multiple system atrophy, progressive supranuclear palsy, corticobasal syndrome, and dementia with Lewy bodies)
- People without Parkinson’s (healthy volunteers)
All groups are essential to help us understand what changes are specific to Parkinson’s disease.
What does participation involve?
Participation is straightforward and can be completed online and in-person
Online or in-person Questionnaires
- Brief questionnaires about your health and possible symptoms (approximately 20-30 minutes)
In-person Blood Collection
- A simple blood sample (approximately 15 minutes) at one of our University of Tasmania campuses
Prize Draw
By contributing to this research, you can also be entered into a prize draw to win 1 of 2 x $200 gift cards!
Cancer and Genomics studies
PC4PC-TAS offers genetic testing (in a research setting) to men diagnosed with high-grade prostate cancer. High-grade is defined as a Gleason score of 8 or an ISUP grade of 4 at original diagnosis.
Specifically, this study involves obtaining genetic information for each participant by sequencing their DNA to identify genetic changes that contributed to the development of their cancer, which in some cases may inform treatment decisions.
All participants will be informed if we have or have not identified a genetic change that is currently relevant to their health. If you have any questions and/or would like to discuss whether you are eligible, please reach out.
The GRIPF study aims to better understand the genetic factors contributing to the development of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a rare and devastating lung disease.
This study aims to recruit individuals with a strong family history of IPF, in addition to their immediate family members (both with and without IPF). The overarching aim of this study is to identify and characterise genetic changes that cause IPF. Unfortunately, not all individuals will receive a genetic result given that we still know very little about what causes IPF. Overall, we hope that this study will provide more individuals with a genetic reason for their disease and ultimately, facilitate personalised treatment.
If you have any questions and/or would like to discuss whether you are eligible, please reach out.
Volunteers needed for Bone Marrow Failure Research
Tasmanians needed for ground-breaking research into Bone Marrow Failure Syndromes, a collection of immune system related medical conditions that cause bone marrow stem cells to reduce or stop producing healthy red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets needed by the body.
By using cutting-edge genetic technology, we aim to uncover the causes of these diseases and develop better treatments.
Participation involves taking a one-time sample of blood, after completion of a consent form and takes around 15 minutes.
For further information:
M 0408 344 559
E marrow.map@utas.edu.au
In ongoing research, we aim to genetically map and functionally characterise genomic influences on blood cell homeostasis. We aim to profile circulating blood cells from a large, population-based cohort of people living in Tasmania. Currently, very little is known about its genetic causes, and treatment options are limited. The insight from this work will lead to the development of novel markers for disease profiling and the identification of potential therapeutic targets for BMFS.
Chief Investigator: Professor Alex Hewitt, This study has been approved by the University of Tasmania Human Research Ethics Committee (H0030868).
Prevention, Health Services and Wellbeing studies
Tasmanians are invited to participate in a new research study examining the perceived impact of free public transport on physical activity and bus/ferry use.
This year the Tasmanian government introduced free public transport from 30 March 2026 - 30 June 2026 to encourage use and offset rising fuel prices. The purpose of the Trips4Free - 2026 study is to better understand community attitudes towards free fare initiatives. It will also explore how this initiative has affected people's daily travel and physical activity, including walking to and from stops and stations.
Participants will be asked to do an online survey, which takes about 10-15 minutes. It will ask about your daily travel, public transport use, physical activity, and other things such as your age, gender and the suburb you live in.
The information collected will be useful for Tasmanian health and public transport authorities in understanding whether free transport incentives can benefit the community's health. Participants will also have the opportunity to enter a prize draw for one of five $100 gift cards.
You are invited to participate if you:
- live in Tasmania;
- are aged 18 years or older;
- can access an online survey; and
- have the ability to access and use public transport if you wish to.
Your participation is voluntary.
If you have any queries, concerns or issues with this study, you can contact the Lead Investigator, Professor Verity Cleland on (03) 6226 4603 or verity.cleland@utas.edu.au
This study has been approved by the University of Tasmania Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC). If you have concerns or complaints about the conduct of this study, you can contact the Executive Officer of the HREC on (03) 6226 6254 or email human.ethics@utas.edu.au. The Executive Officer is the person nominated to receive complaints from research participants. You will need to quote H0040630.
What is the ACTIVE KNEECAPs! study about and why is it important?
This project is for young people (aged 10-19 years) with kneecap pain. Kneecap pain in young people is common, and affects their ability to do their daily activities, participate in sport and physical activity, and interact with their peers. For many young people, their kneecap pain does not resolve on its own, and they can continue to have kneecap pain throughout their adolescence and even into adulthood.
The problem is that we don’t know which treatments are best for kneecap pain in young people. ACTIVE KNEECAPs! will test three different treatment approaches for kneecap pain in young people, which have been developed to specifically meet the unique needs of young people. These treatment approaches are based on years of research from our team and include input from young people with kneecap pain in their design.
The three treatment approaches we will test are:
- advice and information about kneecap pain, and some simple strategies to manage it,
- shoe inserts (foot orthoses) to wear in everyday shoes, combined with advice, and
- physiotherapy (including exercises, knee taping and education) combined with advice.
It’s important for you to know that each of these three treatment approaches have preliminary evidence that they may help to reduce kneecap pain in young people. We don’t know which approach will be better. That is why we are doing this project – so that we can give health care practitioners evidence-based information about which treatments are effective, and which treatments are the most cost-effective.
What is important to know about this research project?
This project is a randomised clinical trial (or RCT). This means that all participants are randomly allocated to receive one of the three different treatment approaches. This is a very important part of the study design and makes the findings of our study stronger.
The allocation process is completely random, like flipping a coin. There is no way for us or you to control or influence which treatment group your child goes into. Your child has an equal chance of getting into each treatment group.
We don’t know if ACTIVE KNEECAPs treatments will be any better than standard treatments. It is possible that your child may not derive any personal benefit from participating in the project.
What does participation involve?
If you and your child decide to participate in the project, the main things involved are:
- Being in the project for 9 months.
- Coming to the Menzies Institute for Medical Research for an initial appointment, where your child’s knee will be assessed. If eligible, and you both give consent to take part in the project, they will fill in some online questionnaires, and be given the advice resources to take home (about 1.5 hours).
- Joining a phone or zoom call with a member of our research team 1-2 weeks after the initial assessment to talk through the advice resources, and ask any questions (about 15-20 minutes).
- Possibly attending treatment sessions at one of our project treatment clinics closest to your home (if assigned to the shoe insert group or physiotherapy group) (about 30-60 minutes each time).
- Filling in online questionnaires and joining short phone calls with our research team at regular times during the project (no more than 30 minutes each time).
Participant information sheet for parents (PDF 496.9 KB)
Get free expert help for your knee pain
If you are aged 10-19 and get knee pain when using stairs, squatting, running, jumping or sitting, you may be eligible for a free knee assessment and treatment with a qualified physiotherapist or podiatrist as part of the ACTIVE KNEECAPs! trial.
If you have any queries, concerns or issues with this study, you can contact the Clinical Trial Coordinator, Kathy Buttigieg on (03) 6226 6909 or Kathy.Buttigieg@utas.edu.au.
This study has been approved by the University of Tasmania Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC). If you have concerns or complaints about the conduct of this study, you can contact the Executive Officer of the HREC on (03) 6226 6254 or email human.ethics@utas.edu.au. The Executive Officer is the person nominated to receive complaints from research participants. You will need to quote H0040169.
Environmental and Respiratory Health studies
- Vaping is one of the key health issues facing young people today
- Researchers from the University of Tasmania School of Medicine and the Menzies Institute for Medical Research are working in collaboration with the Department of Health and QUIT Tasmania to design ways to support Tasmanian kids to remove vaping from their lives.
- The research is using an exciting approach that involves working directly with young people to design and test the solutions.
- They are looking for Tasmanians aged 12 to 18 years to be a part of the research
- The research involves a survey and focus group discussions
- Children aged 15 to 18 years can complete the survey and sign up for the focus groups themselves.
- Children aged 12 to 14 years need mum, dad or a carer’s permission to take part.
The Menzies Institute for Medical Research is currently recruiting participants for the Statins Against Bushfire Smoke (SABS) study.
The SABS study aims to find out whether statins protect the heart and brain from the stress and inflammation that can occur when breathing air affected by bushfire smoke. Understanding this may help us find new ways to protect people’s health during periods of poor air quality.
Participating in the study involves two visits to the Climate Hut, a specialised facility in Hobart where we can control the quality of the air. Each visit will take approximately 3½ hours, including around 2 hours inside in the Climate Hut. At one visit, the air will be fresh and filtered. At the other visit the air will contain carefully controlled amounts of bushfire smoke.
We will:
- Measure your heart rate variability, blood pressure, and stiffness of your arteries.
- Collect blood, urine, saliva, and take a nasal swab (similar to a COVID test).
- Assess your reaction time, attention and balance.
- Ask you to complete some short surveys about the foods you eat and any symptoms
All of this helps us to assess how bushfire smoke impacts health.
We are looking for healthy adults aged 40-67 years. Both people who currently take a statin and people who do not take a statin are welcome to participate. Compensation for your time is offered.
If you are interested in participating, please fill out your contact details on the link below and the team will be in touch regarding your participation.
Find out more about the SABS study
If you have any questions, please contact the research team via email: SABS@utas.edu.au
This study has been approved by the University of Tasmania Human Research Ethics Committee (H40420)
Cardiovascular Health studies
Aortic Stenosis Screening Using Artificial Intelligence to acquire and interpret Echocardiograms (ASSURE-Echo) is a study led by Professor Tom Marwick, leading cardiologist and former Menzies director. It is investigating the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve detection of heart valve issues in ageing patients Aortic valve stenosis (AS) - a condition where the valve thickens and narrows - is increasingly common with age. Echocardiography (echo) is the gold standard for diagnosing AS, but access remains limited, particularly in rural and remote areas of Australia. Currently, only patients with suspected disease are referred for testing, and widespread screening is not feasible due to the need for highly trained sonographers.
Recent advances in AI now allow non-experts to capture and interpret basic echo images at the point of care. This innovation could lower the threshold for testing, helping to reduce delays and the need for travel.
However, AI-enabled echo software is not yet approved for clinical use in Australia. This research project—funded by HCF Health Insurance and the National Health and Medical Research Council—aims to demonstrate the benefits of AI-assisted screening in an Australian healthcare setting.
Pop up clinics have been held in Huonville and Launceston, and more planned in St Helens and Northwest Coast.
The Menzies Institute for Medical Research is currently recruiting participants for participation in the ‘Exercise Physiology in the IdentifiCation of high Blood Pressure (EPIC BP) study.’
The EPIC-BP study seeks to understand how the measurement of blood pressure during exercise can be used to predict underlying high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease risk.
By participating in this study, you will gain a comprehensive understanding of your blood pressure control and aerobic fitness level.
Participation in the EPIC-BP study involves three appointments at the Menzies Clinic over a 3–4-week period. The duration of the appointments will vary between 30 and 90 minutes, during which time you will complete a series of exercise tests and blood pressure measurements. You will also be sent home from each visit with a monitor that will measure your blood pressure every 30 minutes for 24 hours.
We are looking for people who are:
- Aged 30 years or older
- Not pregnant
- Do not have a musculoskeletal injury/any other condition that would prevent the completion of exercise.
If you are interested in participating, please fill out a screening and eligibility questionnaire at the link below and the team will be in touch regarding your participation.
Express an interest in the EPIC Study
This study has been approved by the University of Tasmania Human Research Ethics Committee (H0027745)
If you have any questions before completing the eligibility survey, please contact the research team via email: EPIC.BP@utas.edu.au.
The activity has a focus on primary prevention of cardiovascular disease and the clinical utility of coronary artery calcium scoring. You are presented with a case study of an Australian man who presents for cardiovascular risk management in primary practice. This activity explores actions you may take to reduce cardiovascular risk, the clinical utility of CAC scoring to guide primary prevention strategies and the perceptions of CV risk in the community. On completion of the course, you are awarded with 2CPD points.
Members of our Cardiovascular Research Flagship team are conducting a study on the early detection of heart disease in people living with Diabetes.
If you have Type 2 Diabetes, you may qualify for an important study of cardiac scans and exercise testing to see if any damage has occurred.
If there is evidence of heart damage, you may receive exercise training and medications that could help the heart recover
To be eligible, you must be:
- Have Type 2 Diabetes
- Aged over 65 years
- Reside in Tasmania
For more information about this study, you can contact our Research Nurse, Kristyn Whitmore, directly by calling +61 3 6226 4235 or emailing the cv imaging research team.
The Menzies Institute for Medical Research is currently recruiting participants for the Statins Against Bushfire Smoke (SABS) study.
The SABS study aims to find out whether statins protect the heart and brain from the stress and inflammation that can occur when breathing air affected by bushfire smoke. Understanding this may help us find new ways to protect people’s health during periods of poor air quality.
Participating in the study involves two visits to the Climate Hut, a specialised facility in Hobart where we can control the quality of the air. Each visit will take approximately 3½ hours, including around 2 hours inside in the Climate Hut. At one visit, the air will be fresh and filtered. At the other visit the air will contain carefully controlled amounts of bushfire smoke.
We will:
- Measure your heart rate variability, blood pressure, and stiffness of your arteries.
- Collect blood, urine, saliva, and take a nasal swab (similar to a COVID test).
- Assess your reaction time, attention and balance.
- Ask you to complete some short surveys about the foods you eat and any symptoms
All of this helps us to assess how bushfire smoke impacts health.
We are looking for healthy adults aged 40-67 years. Both people who currently take a statin and people who do not take a statin are welcome to participate. Compensation for your time is offered.
If you are interested in participating, please fill out your contact details on the link below and the team will be in touch regarding your participation.
Find out more about the SABS study
If you have any questions, please contact the research team via email: SABS@utas.edu.au
This study has been approved by the University of Tasmania Human Research Ethics Committee (H40420)
If you didn't find a study that's right for you, you can explore trials happening across Australia on the Australian Clinical Trials website.