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The Life-saving List Gala Dinner

July 2025

Life-saving List Gala raises an incredible $265,000 for blood cancer research

On Friday 18 July, Icon Cancer Foundation had the honour of attending the Life-saving List Gala Dinner, held in memory of Liam O’Brien – a husband, father and friend whose story sparked real change in Australia’s stem cell registry.

A year after his passing, Liam’s wife Josephine has carried his vision forward with strength and purpose, hosting the inaugural Life-saving List Gala and successfully raising $265,000 for Icon Cancer Foundation, supporting research into blood cancers and cellular therapy.

Liam’s Life-saving List

In 2022, Liam was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive blood cancer. His only hope was a stem cell transplant – but Australia’s stem cell donor registry was in crisis. From his hospital bed, Liam and his wife Josephine created The Life-saving List – a grassroots campaign to raise awareness, increase donor registrations, and advocate for urgent reform.

The campaign sparked national media attention and drove action in parliament, leading to a commitment from State and Federal Health Ministers to reform the stem cell registry, increase funding, and introduce cheek swab testing to make it easier to find potential donors.

Within just nine weeks, stem cell donations had almost tripled, leading to one of the highest donation rates in Australia’s history.

Associate Professor James Morton AM, who treated Liam, spoke on behalf of Icon Cancer Foundation and Icon Cancer Centre, delivering a powerful reflection on how research offers the vital next step in blood cancer. His message was a reminder of why continued investment in research is so essential to improving patient outcomes and saving lives.

We were also honoured to have oncology nurses Caitlin Pert and Clare Smith from Icon Cancer Centre South Brisbane volunteer on the night to help raise funds for Icon Cancer Foundation. Both Caitlin and Clare cared for Liam during his treatment. Their presence was a quiet reminder of the people behind cancer care.

Thank you to IVY PR and The Diamond Group for organising the evening, and to all the event sponsors and partners.

We are deeply grateful to Josephine for her tireless work and to everyone whose generosity made the evening such a beautiful tribute to Liam’s life and his mission.