Spotlight: Associate Professor Joy Wolfram

We recently caught up with Associate Professor Joy Wolfram, winner of the Queensland 2024 Young Tall Poppy Science award. Joy is an immunotherapist and extracellular vesicle researcher at The University of Queensland.

Q. Congratulations on winning the Young Tall Poppy award. Can you tell us about what this award means to you?

A.  The awards are hosted the Australian Institute of Policy and Science (AIPS) in partnership with the Queensland Department of Environment, Science and Innovation and are a fantastic opportunity for early- to mid-career researchers to connect with policy makers and the public. This really helps to platform our research and engage policy makers to support and fund these life-saving techniques and make them available to patients sooner.  

Q. You’ve had some great STEM experiences. Can you tell us a little about one of your defining moments that helped you choose a career in research?

I was very fortunate to do my schooling in Finland, which has an excellent public school system.  I’ve always been very curious, and when I saw a bacterial culture our local vet grew I was very keen to do the same. The vet was very encouraging and gave me some basic materials and instructions. My parents were shocked to see what was living in our fridge! My parents were also very supportive of this curiosity and supported me with a microscope and other equipment.  My interest in immunotherapy and cancer treatments was driven by experience with loved ones, and my friend Rebecca, who passed away at a very young age due to breast cancer. I feel passionately that we have a bigger purpose than ourselves, and it is good to be able to give back to society.

Q. Inspiring! So what are you plans for the future?

I am very keen to expand our collaborations with clinicians and make our research available to more patients, to help with their treatment. Nanomedicine and extracellular vesicle therapeutics have the potential to be 100 times more effective than conventional methods. We also need to seek funding and government support to make these treatments available sooner.

Q. And finally, any advice for women and girls thinking of a career in STEM?

I believe in working hard, finding a bigger purpose, being curious, and making your perspective heard in STEM careers and research. We only have one life, so it is important to do things that will benefit society today and into the future.

Thank you Associate Professor Wolfram! Your work is truly inspiring and we look forward to catching up with you for an update in the future!