Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

This week marks the 10th anniversary of Macular Degeneration Awareness Week, and I rise today to support this initiative. How precious is our sight? Seeing the beauty of the world around us is something many of us would take for granted. But to lose the ability to see would be devastating. Sight is a gift we should not overlook. Macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in Australia, affecting central vision. It is age related, with one in seven people over the age of 50 affected by the disease. The incidence of macular degeneration increases with age. With my electorate of Ryan being home to over 3,000 residents in aged care, it is an issue that is of great importance to me and to those I represent.

It is estimated that there are 17,700 new cases of macular degeneration every year in Australia, and this costs the economy $2.6 billion a year. There is currently no cure for the disease, but early detection can slow the process and offers the best chance of retaining one's sight. With this in mind, the Macular Degeneration Foundation aims to raise awareness of the disease and encourages all Australians, particularly our older Australians, to regularly have their eyes checked—including their macula. The macula is at the very centre of the retina in your eye and is responsible for fine detail and your central vision. You read with your macula, distinguish faces, drive your car—anything that requires detailed vision. It is important to take care of your macula. You cannot change your genes or your age but living a healthy lifestyle, not smoking and eating well can help prevent the onset of the disease.

To truly appreciate the value of your macular health, I encourage everyone to visit the Macular Degeneration Foundation's website and take the Amsler Grid test. This will tell you if you have the early signs of macular degeneration. The foundation knows that, whilst early detection gives you the best chance of beating macular degeneration, it is imperative that we find a cure. As Australians, we have all seen what has been achieved by the pioneering work of the Fred Hollows Foundation. Finding a cure to make forms of blindness preventable makes an enormous difference to anyone's life. Finding a cure for Australia's leading cause of blindness is challenging, yet, if we are all aware of the issue and work together to find a cure, that can be achieved.

With this in mind, the Macular Degeneration Foundation have announced their single biggest commitment to research regarding the disease. They have recently launched the Macular Degeneration Research Grants Program, which will provide $1.5 million to researchers in this area over the next three years. The foundation's aim is for Australians to collectively raise $10 million over the next 10 years so that together we can find a cure for the leading cause of blindness in Australia. I encourage everyone to get behind this cause and remember to check your macula.

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