SpinalCure Australia

25/08/2026

One in 20 million. That’s Emma Mickle. ✨

Our Ambassador Emma Mickle features in a powerful episode of ListenABLE, sharing the story of the extraordinary accident that changed her life and the journey that followed.

In 2020, Emma was hiking in New Zealand when a three-metre tree branch fell from 20 metres above and struck her. She suffered 20 broken bones including a fractured skull and jaw, three fractured vertebrae, an incomplete spinal cord injury and serious nerve damage.

Today, Emma is a para-cyclist, an Ironman and is working towards representing Australia at the LA 2028 Paralympic Games.

What strikes us most about Emma is that her strength isn’t loud. She’s thoughtful, gentle and quietly determined, but underneath that is an absolute powerhouse. 💪

Her story is one of extraordinary resilience, adaptation and finding a way forward when life changes in an instant.

It’s a wonderful conversation and a great insight into the person behind the athlete.

🎧 Listen to Emma’s story on ListenABLE here: https://youtu.be/D-gvDV1OVJo?si=gkVR4IhPVGM1yUO_

What would your life look like if you had brushed your teeth for ju...

21/08/2026

One mum. One marathon. One mission: a cure for spinal cord injury. 🏃‍♀️

Karina Richter has never run a marathon before. On 30 August, she’ll take on the 42.195km TCS Sydney Marathon to raise funds for cure-focused spinal cord injury research.

What started as a personal challenge has grown into a community effort, with family, friends and supporters getting behind Karina and helping turn her determination into impact. Thanks to their generosity, she’s more than tripled her original $3,000 fundraising goal, with over $9,000 raised so far.

This is what our community can do together. 💙

We’re incredibly grateful to Karina for taking on this challenge and to everyone supporting her along the way.

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/health/fitness/cardio/turramurra-mother-karina-richter-to-run-marathon-after-son-alexs-devastating-injury/news-story/5ad21510c1373f06bdecfd1c94b3794a

Thinking about taking on your own challenge for SpinalCure? Send us a DM. We’d love to hear from you.

A Turramurra mother who has never run a marathon is preparing to tackle the 42.195km course from North Sydney to the Sydney Opera House for her 23-year-old son Alex, who was left quadriplegic after a mountain bike accident at 16.

20/08/2026

🧬 Mapping spinal cord injury to unlock new treatment pathways

Philanthropy makes bold research possible. Support from Hearts & Minds, as nominated by Caledonia, helps SpinalCure invest in promising research, strengthen collaboration and build the momentum needed to accelerate progress towards a cure.

One example is Dr Laura Grice’s research through the Forward Fellowship. Laura is working to build the first molecular “Google Maps” of spinal cord injury, mapping what happens in the spinal cord after injury across time and different injury levels.

This could help researchers better understand the complex biological responses to injury and identify new pathways towards future treatments.

Thank you to Hearts & Minds and Caledonia for backing our work and helping turn bold research into new possibilities. 💙

https://www.heartsandmindsinvestments.com.au/insights/understanding-spinal-cord-injury-recovery

In Australia, roughly 21,000 people are living with a spinal cord injury, and there is currently no cure. The world's first molecular map of spinal cord injury across time and injury levels

18/08/2026

📣 Expressions of Interest: Spinal Cord Injury Research End-User Advisory Group

How can we make sure spinal cord injury research has the greatest possible impact for people living with SCI?

A new Spinal Cord Injury Research End-User Advisory Group (SCI-EUAG) is being established to help support the translation, dissemination and implementation of findings from several current SCI research studies, including eWALK2, Get a Grip (GaG) and the RRULI trial.

The group will bring together people with lived experience, family members and carers, clinicians, researchers, consumers, advocates, service providers and others with relevant experience to help ensure research findings have meaningful, real-world impact.

Expressions of interest are now open, with people from metropolitan, regional, rural and interstate locations encouraged to apply.

If you’re interested in joining the group, please email Dr Laura Stendell at [email protected] with a brief expression of interest addressing:

1. Which stakeholder group(s) you represent
2. The experience, expertise or perspective you would bring to the group
3. Your interest in contributing to SCI research translation and implementation

📅 First meeting: Tuesday 25 August at 11am AEST, online
💰 Members will be remunerated for their time

14/08/2026

Earlier this week, our new Ambassador Alex Noble joined Channel 7's The Morning Show to talk about his journey with spinal cord injury and why he’s joining SpinalCure Australia in the fight for a cure.

Alex continues to show the world that, even after spinal cord injury, just about anything is possible. He brings lived experience, determination and a powerful voice to our work, helping raise awareness and champion the research and investment needed to change what’s possible for people living with SCI.

We’re proud to have Alex alongside us. 💙

🎥 Watch Alex’s interview below.

fight you fight

12/08/2026

✨ Alex Noble has officially joined SpinalCure Australia as an Ambassador, bringing his personal experience of spinal cord injury, his passion for advocacy and his powerful message, “I fight you fight”, to our work towards a cure.

This morning, Alex joined Channel 7's The Morning Show to share an update on his story and talk about his new role with SpinalCure. Alex and his family have been close supporters for many years, and we’re delighted to welcome him to the team.

Alex is using his voice to raise awareness of spinal cord injury, champion cure-focused research and advocate for the government and philanthropic investment needed to make a cure a reality.

We’re incredibly pleased to have Alex alongside us as we work towards a future where spinal cord injury is no longer considered permanent. 💙

To learn more and watch a little of Alex’s conversation from this morning click below.

https://7news.com.au/the-morning-show/former-nsw-rugby-player-turns-adversity-into-force-for-change-after-being-told-he-may-never-move-again-c-22711292


7NEWS Sydney

Alex Noble broke his C4 vertebra and underwent surgery before spending four days in a coma.

11/08/2026

🏃‍♀️ TRAINING IS RAMPING UP!

With the TCS TCS Sydney Marathon presented by ASICS now just weeks away, Karina Richter is putting in the kilometres as she prepares to take on 42.195km for her son Alex and for a future where spinal cord injury no longer means a lifetime of limitations.

This weekend, Karina took on the Voltaren City2Surf as part of her marathon training, tackling the course as a practice run ahead of the big day.

Every kilometre is helping Karina build towards her goal, and every kilometre represents her determination to help fund research that could change what’s possible for people living with spinal cord injury.

💙 One mum. One marathon. One mission: a cure for spinal cord injury. Follow Karina’s journey and support Run with Richter via the link in our bio.

10/08/2026

NervGen Pharma has announced FDA alignment on RESTORE, a Phase 3 registrational study of NVG-291 for people living with chronic tetraplegia. SpinalCure is staying closely connected with Professor Monica Perez, who is leading the trial, and will continue to share the latest developments.

The planned study will evaluate whether NVG-291, a potential neuroreparative therapy, can improve hand function following spinal cord injury. The study is expected to involve around 150 participants across up to 60 sites in the US and Canada.

This follows promising results from an earlier clinical trial, where participants receiving NVG-291 showed greater improvements in hand function than those receiving placebo.

Importantly, there is still a long way to go. Phase 3 trials are designed to determine whether promising earlier results can be confirmed in a much larger group of people.

But the move towards a Phase 3 registrational study is an encouraging development for the spinal cord injury community, and another example of promising research progressing towards potential new treatments.

🔬 Read more about the RESTORE trial and NervGen’s announcement here: https://nervgen.com/nervgen-pharma-announces-successful-end-of-phase-2-meeting-and-fda-alignment-on-restore-a-phase-3-registrational-study-of-nvg-291-for-chronic-tetraplegia/?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Alignment with the FDA across proposed study parameters of RESTORE, a 16-week registrational study evaluating NVG-291 in chronic tetraplegia. Primary endpoint will be the change from baseline in GRASSP Quantitative Prehension at Week 12, a validated functional endpoint designed to capture improvemen...

30/07/2026

✨ Highlights from the Spinal Cord Injury Cure Summit 2026, hosted by SpinalCure Australia and made possible thanks to funding from NSW Health.

The two-day Summit brought together leading researchers, clinicians, advocates and people with lived experience from across Australia and New Zealand to showcase advances in spinal cord injury treatment, rehabilitation and recovery.

It also provided an opportunity to strengthen collaboration across the sector.

The message was clear: this is an incredibly exciting time for cure-focused SCI research. New opportunities are creating momentum. Progress is creating hope, and in 2026, that hope feels more real than ever before. ✨

The CatWalk Trust | Spinal Cord Injury Research Collaborative | Kolling Institute | The University of Queensland | Mater | The University of Sydney | Griffith University | UNSW

24/07/2026

A little Friday fun! 🏎️

Our Executive Director, Duncan Wallace, was one of the lucky raffle winners at the Empower Golf Australia Charity Golf Day, taking home a Ford Mustang Driving Experience, courtesy of City Ford Sydney.

While Duncan couldn't get behind the wheel himself, his wife Darlene certainly made the most of it! She even discovered the button that changes the exhaust from an urban-friendly growl to something that would terrify any large animal, making her even more deeply in love with the car. 😂

Happy wife, happy life! 💙