A legacy that lives on through the next generation of discovery

Immunology & Diabetes researcher Dr Kylie Jevon has been awarded the 2026 Helen Thomas Early Career Fellowship in Type 1 Diabetes, recognising the outstanding potential of her research investigating a novel immunotherapy approach, and honouring the enduring legacy of Professor Helen Thomas.

A pioneering leader in type 1 diabetes research at SVI, Helen dedicated her career to advancing understanding of the disease and mentoring emerging scientists. This fellowship continues that legacy by supporting the next generation of researchers to pursue ideas that seek to translate discovery into therapies that can slow, prevent or ultimately change the course of type 1 diabetes.

The one-year fellowship, valued at $85,000, and supported by the Australian Diabetes Society (ADS), Breakthrough T1D, Diabetes Victoria and SVI, will support Kylie’s project exploring how T cell exhaustion could be harnessed to treat type 1 diabetes.

In type 1 diabetes, the immune system mistakenly attacks insulin-producing beta cells. Kylie’s research investigates whether encouraging a state of ‘exhaustion’ in these harmful T cells could reduce their ability to drive this attack, helping preserve the body’s own insulin production.

“By better understanding how we can switch off or dampen the immune response, we hope to find new ways to protect insulin-producing cells,” said Kylie.

As part of the fellowship Kylie will present her findings at the Australasian Diabetes Congress in 2027, contributing to a growing body of research focused on improving outcomes for people living with type 1 diabetes.

“We hope this work will help build a clearer picture of how the immune system can be safely targeted in type 1 diabetes and form the foundations of future therapies.”