Announcement of Federal Government Funding - July 2020

Health Minister Awards Australian Company Merunova more than $970,000 to Improve the  Diagnosis of Back Pain

Merunova welcomes the announcement today by the Minister for Health, the Hon. Greg Hunt of more than $970,000 to accelerate the development of our next generation spine imaging technology for Australians with back pain.

Merunova Co-Founders Dr Ashish Diwan and Dr Kyle Sheldrick (pictured below) described the funding through the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) BioMedTech Horizon (BMTH) program  operated by MTPConnect, as “a game changer and an investment in the future of Australians suffering from back pain”.

Dr Kyle Sheldrick said some of the effects of this grant will be to “further refine the MRI scanning process and cut down the time patients spend in the MRI scanner” and to “open research studies to patients in Australia sooner” with a target of “providing answers to back pain sufferers and selecting the best treatment for each person”. 

Dr Ashish Diwan described the BMTH grant as “a massive win for back pain sufferers”. He said, “patients who have back pain often suffer in silence”. He said, “this funding is tremendous news for Merunova, and will significantly accelerate our path towards clinical diagnosis availability and helping more patients”. Further “every dollar from this grant will be spent in Australia, creating and supporting local high-skill medical, technical and research jobs and increasing our capacity to be internationally competitive”.

Merunova’s technology improved accuracy in diagnosing spinal disc degeneration from 70% to 97% in a study published in JOR Spine (link). The technology underpinning this grant was developed at SpineLabs, based at the St George Hospital, University of New South Wales.

One in six Australians suffer from back pain each year, with more than 100,000 presenting to hospital emergency departments. Backpain is the second leading cause of disease burden in Australia, second only to heart disease. Healthcare for backpain sufferers costs $3 billion per year in Australia, with estimates of economic costs even larger again.

The Merunova head office is based in Kogarah, a suburb in South Sydney NSW, within the George’s River Council’s Health, Education and Innovation Precinct (HEIP).

Dr Diwan said, “the commitment of George’s River Council to supporting cutting-edge high-tech medical and scientific industry gave us the confidence to plan our clinical studies, engage partners and set up our business in the area.”

Pictured: Dr Ashish Diwan (L) and Dr Kyle Sheldrick (R), co-founders of Merunova Pty Ltd. Source: Merunova.

Twitter Handles: 

Merunova: @merunova1

Ashish Diwan: @drashishdiwan

Kyle Sheldrick: @k_sheldrick