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At the start of 2020, as the world was coming to grips with what was then known as the novel coronavirus, software developer Colin Hickey decided he needed to act.
“It sounds stupid, but I just woke up in the middle of the night and thought, ‘I better do something about that’,” he said.
Software developer Colin Hickey, with the support of his wife Maggy and help from an American university, developed a breath testing device for COVID-19.
Two years later, and with the help of an American university, he is in clinical trials for a breath-testing device that can detect virus particles and produce results within minutes.
The coronavirus pandemic has put enormous strain on everything from hospital capacity to global supply chains and manufacturing. It also spurred a flurry of activity around vaccine development and medical manufacturing as governments, health experts and big business realised the world needed solutions to the crisis, and quickly.
On a smaller scale, Australians have been quietly working away on projects – from Mr Hickey’s breath testing device to vaccine patches and rapid COVID-19 testing machines.
Michael Junger is part of a Brisbane-based team that has been developing a vaccine patch since 2011 but said development had accelerated during the pandemic.
“It’s great timing for us,” he said.
The pandemic drew the federal government’s focus to expanding the country’s manufacturing capabilities. In October 2020, it earmarked $1.5 billion for projects in six areas including food and beverage, defence and medical technology under its modern manufacturing strategy.
Federal Industry Minister Angus Taylor said the pandemic focused attention on the need to prioritise support for medical technology, and the government has been handing out grants ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars to help projects reach commercial potential.
“The pandemic has highlighted the enormous importance of medical technologies, there’s no question about that,” he said.
Projects to combat COVID-19
Vaxxas vaccine patch – A small patch covered in microprojections, coated with vaccine and flicked onto the skin using a specialised applicator. The patches don’t require refrigeration and don’t require a medical professional to apply. In clinical trials.
Examin COVID breath test – A breath-testing device with a biosensor that can detect virus particles and produce results within minutes. The device is designed to be simple to use and would be useful for testing in GP clinics. In clinical trials.
Avecina’s Sentinel screening platform – Described as similar to a mix of PCR and rapid antigen testing, the machine can process more than 90,000 samples a day and provide results within 30 minutes. Plans to be in market in the second half of 2022.
The Examin COVID breath test, the Vaxxas vaccine patch and the Avicena COVID screening platform have together received millions in funding through the federal government’s modern manufacturing initiative and its $30 million commercialisation fund.
Business and technology expert Tony Fitzgerald said the Avicena screening machine was born out of the pandemic, and the realisation that mass screening devices would be needed in areas from border security, to the mining sector, supermarket distribution facilities and aged care.
Mr Fitzgerald said the machine, which could test tens of thousands of samples a day and produce screening results in 30 minutes, was at the “pointy end” of development, with plans for broader commercialisation in the second half of the year.
Working prototypes of Mr Hickey’s Examin breath test device have already gone through initial human trials in Malaysia and a full clinical trial in Singapore is set to begin by the end of the month. Next comes all the regulatory hoops, with mountains of paperwork that must be completed before the devices can be distributed at scale.
The Vaxxas vaccine patch is one of many medical technology innovations that have been spurred along by the pandemic.Credit:Paul Harris
“We wanted to have something that worked before we said anything to anybody about it,” he said. “But certainly the government helping now is great. It is not just the money, it’s the rhetoric and the actual support around it.”
Australia has long had world-leading medical experts and researchers thanks, in part, to support through government research grants.
But when it comes to turning treatments and devices into products that can be widely used, the medical community has often gone overseas for both manufacturing and regulatory approval before bringing them back to Australia.
“Funding research is great, but if you don’t back it up at the end of the day with manufacture then what are you doing?” Mr Junger said.
The Vaxxas vaccine device, currently in phase one clinical trials, is a small patch covered in minuscule projections coated with vaccine powder, which is flicked onto the arm. While it sounds simple, Mr Junger said the team had to develop several bespoke technologies to produce it.
The project has received funding from the federal government, which will help Vaxxas produce enough for clinical trials. But Mr Junger said the project needed much more support going forward.
Mr Fitzgerald said the pandemic had demonstrated the importance of securing every step of the process – from research and development to commercial-scale manufacturing.
“I think governments are becoming more aware of the need to try and nurture Australian technologies,” he said.
Avicena’s screening device, with (from left) senior engineering manager Mark Sheridan, investment partner Guy Le Page, and Tony Fitzgerald.
Coronavirus will be around for some time yet, but all the projects will have a life after the pandemic. The Vaxxas team was working on influenza and measles and rubella vaccines before the pandemic began, and both testing companies are looking at other diseases, including tuberculosis, for their devices.
Mr Taylor said the federal government was “absolutely committed” to strengthening Australia’s medical technology sector and building on it in the years to come, should the Coalition win the upcoming election.
“The capacity of technology to solve hard health problems is not new, but I think it’s much more readily apparent now as a result of the pandemic,” he said. “And we, as a government, we’re very excited about that: we can see the opportunity, and we can see how much Australian innovation is going on.”
Mr Fitzgerald hopes approval processes can become more streamlined across Australian jurisdictions, and that science remains a national priority.
Even after the pandemic, he is optimistic about the future of medical technology, and not just from the big companies such as CSL.
“There are a lot of little groups that are very innovative, and given the right encouragement I think we can have a much more powerful and independent medical device and pharmaceutical sector here in Australia,” he said.
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