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Multiple myeloma is a cancer of the blood for which there is still no cure. A standard treatment for myeloma is high dose therapy followed by autologous stem cell infusion (ASCT). It is thought that the better the response achieved by ASCT, the longer a patient will remain stable. Thalidomide has been shown to have potent anti-myeloma activity and this trial will test that if it is added to a treatment regimen, a longer time of disease stability will be achieved. Information on the tolerability of thalidomide will be collected and also if it makes a difference in overall survival.

Dry powder mannitol has the potential to be prescribed as a treatment for bronchiectasis because of its demonstrated ability to enhance mucociliary clearance. However, some bronchiectatic patients demonstrate airway narrowing after inhaling mannitol. If pre-medicating these patients with either sodium cromoglycate or eformoterol can be shown to protect them from developing significant airway narrowing after inhaling mannitol, this patient population may be able to access a potential new treatment for their disease.

As a result of age-related changes, chronic medical conditions, the side-effects of medication or a combination of these, many older people decide or are required to give up driving. Driving is a highly valued role and skill, associated with freedom, independence and convenience. Because of this, the transition to driving cessation can be traumatic and associated with depression, social isolation and compromised well-being. Despite the frequent reporting of poor outcomes for older people after driving cessation, limited attention has been given to developing and evaluating methods to help older people prepare for and cope with this transition. This study will evaluate the effect of a group intervention on older people's episodes away from home, use of alternative transport modes, life satisfaction, depression, and self-rated performance of and satisfaction with up to five lifestyle goals related to transport. This study will contribute to evidence for the effectiveness of a group intervention versus usual practice (which is to say, no intervention) to help older people maintain their well-being and stay engaged in valued roles, activities and the community after retiring from driving. It will also contribute to the theoretical underpinnings of adjustment after undergoing the transition to retired driver.

A Multi-strategy intervention program in Geelong aims to promote healthy eating and physical activity and reduce overweight and obesity in pre-school children compared children across the rest of Victoria.

Colac's Be Active Eat Well is a community-based intervention program aimed at increasing the community's capacity to promote healthy eating and physical activity and to reduce unhealthy weight gain in primary school aged children.

The main purpose of this study is to determine whether the long term inhalation of a salt solution will decrease the number of lung infections and improve the quality of life of people with bronchiectasis.

Clinical experience has shown continued use of antiviral medication to treat hepatitis B can lead to changes or ‘mutations’ in the hepatitis B virus (or HBV). The virus, once it has ‘mutated’, might then be resistant to the particular medication previously taken, and a new hepatitis B medication is needed to mange the infection. If the infection is not managed with effective medication liver damage can occur. Early detection of hepatitis B mutations can enable doctors to manage hepatitis B treatment before further liver damage can occur. The purpose of this project is to describe the mutations in the hepatitis B virus in Australian patients with hepatitis B. Further, it aims to investigate the relationships between demographic and clinical factors to the appearance of these viral mutations.

The specific aims are to compare Gen II and Journey TKA regarding : •Patient satisfaction and functional outcome •The degree of postoperative knee flexion. •3D kinematics of the knee joints •Gait pattern •The rate of complications and difficulties •The migration pattern of the tibia trays

Chronic neck pain sufferers have been found to often suffer from trigger points in neck musculature. Trigger points are bands of hyper-irritable spots in taut muscle, which can cause tenderness, a jump sign, and radiculations of pain. Chronic pain, that greater than 3 months duration, is understood to have significant psychosocial overlay. Very few primary health care therapists have the means to treat this psychosocial overlay and hence reduce associated physical symptoms. Neuro Emotional Technique is a well-established chiropractic intervention which attempts to treat this psychosocial overlay. This study took chronic neck pain sufferers, and measured their presentations of pain on a visual analog scale, and also via a quantified pressure applied to the trigger points with a pressure gauge algometer. The treatment group then received one NET treatment, whilst the control received a SHAM treatment. They both presented 3 days later to see if their symptoms had changed in severity. The primary purpose was to see if NET consultation had a short term effect of the severity of trigger points in neck musculature. The null hypothesis was that NET would not cause a reduction in pain sensitivity in trigger points as measured by pressure algometry.

Angina is a medical term used to describe pain (usually felt in the chest) due to coronary artery disease causing reduced blood flow to the heart. We are investigating the use of G-CSF to treat chronic angina in patients who have failed standard treatment with medications and or coronary stenting/coronary artery bypass surgery. G-CSF is a man made version of a naturally occuring hormone. There is experimental evidence that G-CSF can stimulate the formation of new blood vessels in the heart and protect heart muscle cells. Through these effects, we hypothesise that patients will derive improvements in blood flow to the heart and hence angina symptoms. We will be measuring the effects of G-CSF on blood flow to the heart with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI scan).