Luminesce Alliance

Precision medicine research innovation for children’s health

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At a glance

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    Development stage

    Early-stage research

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    Investment stage

    Public

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    UNSW affiliation

    Co-located company

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    Technology readiness level

    Multiple reearch projects across TRL 1-9

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Why invest
The discovery of thousands of new disease genes means we have a better chance than ever before to understand and manage cancer, rare genetic (inherited) diseases, and neurodevelopmental disorders.

Innovative, translational paediatric research alliance to coordinate and integrate precision medicine for children with cancer, rare diseases and neurodevelopmental disorders. 

Luminesce Alliance is a not-for-profit cooperative joint venture between the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network, the Children’s Cancer Institute, the Children’s Medical Research Institute, UNSW Sydney and the University of Sydney. It has been established with the support of the NSW Government to serve as a leading voice on state, national, and international stages — ensuring the widespread dissemination and effective implementation of research to directly enhance the health of children.

Investment categories

Healthcare & medtech

  • Luminesce Alliance brings together world-leading paediatric precision medicine researchers and clinicians to drive discovery/translation of diagnosis, prevention and treatment for children living with rare genetic diseases and cancers.   

    The alliance facilitates collaboration among health precincts, medical research institutes and universities - giving researchers unparalleled access to a fully integrated ecosystem of infrastructure and expertise.
    • Precision medicine is an emerging approach for disease treatment that takes into account the individual variabilities in genes, environment and lifestyle for each child. This offers therapeutic interventions that succeed where other lines of treatment may have failed.
    • Children metabolise drugs differently from adults and need tailored treatment regimes.
    • Currently 80% of drugs used in children have been developed for use in adults. 
Smaller doses of adult medicine may be ineffective or unsafe for children.
    • Genetic diseases usually appear in childhood and lead to lifelong complications through adulthood.
    • These diseases can impact the entire community through the cost of care and the financial and psychological burden on families.
    • Many diseases of adulthood start in childhood, so improving diagnosis, prevention and treatment has significant long-term benefits.
    • Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network
    • Children’s Cancer Institute
    • Children’s Medical Research Institute
    • UNSW Sydney
    • University of Sydney

  • Between 2019 - 2025 Luminesce Alliance has:

    • Grown $44M into $454.7M leveraged funds

    • Established 195+ STEM jobs

    • Facilitated over 34 clinical trials

    • Collaborated with over 520 national and international organisations 

    • Contributed to 200+ peer-reviewed articles

    • Delivered over 380 presentations nationally and internationally

Partner testimonials
We have a vision to change children’s medicine around the world and we are working at a scale that ensures considerable cost savings and resource sharing. That enables clinicians to drive the research agenda and for researchers to have support for the rapid clinical adoption of their work.

- Kathryn Greiner AO, Luminesce Alliance Board Chair
Complex medical problems require the combined input of researchers with a wide variety of skills and expertise, and Luminesce Alliance is making it so much easier for researchers in the member organisations to align their efforts for the benefit of children and their families.


- Prof Roger Reddel AO, Director of Children’s Medical Research Institute
Luminesce Alliance is a wonderful example of the way medical research should be done – with the best scientists and clinicians working side-by-side to improve health outcomes. We’re so pleased to be part of the Alliance and its mission.

- Prof Michelle Haber AM, Children’s Cancer Institute’s Executive Director
As a collaboration between clinical and research organisations, Luminesce Alliance enables clinicians to drive the research agenda - bedside to benchtop — and researchers to support rapid clinical translation of their work - benchtop to bedside.

- Cathryn Cox PSM, Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network Chief Executive

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