Invited Speakers
Dr Alexis Cutchins
Alexis Cutchins, MD is recognized globally for her clinical expertise in the diagnosis and management of POTS, MCAS, LC, EDS, and other autonomic dysfunctions. She has published papers describing best practices regarding POTS management and highlighting the role of pelvic venous disease in orthostatic intolerance. Dr. Cutchins spent the first thirteen years of her career as Assistant Professor of Medicine at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. After leaving Emory she opened Cutchins Cardiovascular Medicine PLLC in New York City.
Prof David Putrino
David trained and worked as a physiotherapist in Australia before completing a PhD in Neuroscience and moving to the US to work as a researcher. He is currently a Professor in the Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City and is the Nash Family Director of the Cohen Center for Recovery from Complex Chronic Illness. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, David has been recognized globally as a leading expert in the assessment, treatment and underlying pathophysiology of Long COVID. His team has managed the care of thousands of people with Long COVID, ME/CFS and chronic tick- and vector borne illness and have published multiple peer-reviewed scientific papers regarding these diagnoses. In 2019, he was named "Global Australian of the Year" for his contributions to healthcare.
Associate Professor Susan Evans
Associate Professor Susan Evans is a gynaecologist, pain physician, PhD, and lifetime believer in the abilities of women. Fostering equal opportunity for women takes many forms, and her life focus has been in the management of female predominant neuroimmune conditions such as pelvic pain, endometriosis, chronic fatigue and central sensitisation. Her recently published book ‘When Periods Hurt’ addresses pelvic pain as a systemic condition and is particularly focussed on the needs of teens, young women, parents and schools.
A/Prof Evans is Chair of the Pelvic Pain Foundation of Australia and CEO of Alyra Biotech working on the development of a neuroimmune modulating intrauterine device to reduce pelvic pain in women. In 2023 she was an Australian of the Year (SA) finalist.
Megan Gilmour
Megan Gilmour - Global education and technology ambassador, Megan Gilmour co-founded MissingSchool in 2012 after her son, Darcy, endured two years of school isolation. Since then, she has championed students facing complex health challenges and school absence through world- and Australian-first initiatives informed by data from over 1,500 surveys/interviews with teachers and parents. Megan’s early career was served in the NSW Premier’s Department and office of the NSW Finance Minister and later managing global development programs across 24 countries. She is an author/adviser to national reports and policy, a Churchill Policy Fellow, Deakin Honorary Fellow, and the 2025 ACT Australian of the Year. Megan has delivered 50+ keynotes and featured in 400+ media articles on school isolation, policy and technology solutions to non-attendance. Her TEDx Talk has over a million views.
Dr Adrian Lee
Adrian Lee, MBBS PhD, is a consultant clinical immunologist at Westmead Hospital and a research scientist at the Westmead Institute for Medical Research. He graduated from medical school at the University of Tasmania, completed his internal medicine and pathology specialty training in Adelaide and Sydney, and his PhD at The University of Sydney focused on the immunology of Sjögren’s disease. He has the privilege on working on both fundamental laboratory, and clinical research in Sjögren’s disease, and is leading several local and international patient-centred projects in the area. He has authored over 100 peer-reviewed publications and his research has been recognised through several awards including from the Royal Society of New South Wales.
Matthew Flinders Distinguished
Professor Tracey Wade
Matthew Flinders Distinguished Professor Tracey Wade has worked as a clinician and researcher in mental health for over 30 years. She is the director of the Flinders University Services for Eating Disorders. She has cowritten 4 books on cognitive behaviour therapy for eating disorders and perfectionism and has over 300 publications in peer reviewed journals. In 2015 she was elected a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia. In 2023 she was the recipient of the Australian Association for Cognitive and Behavioural Therapy Distinguished Career Award. In 2025 she received the Academy of Eating Disorders Leadership Award in Research, the Australia and New Zealand Academy of Eating Disorders Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Australian Psychological Society Distinguished Contribution to Psychological Science Award. Over 2024 to 2028 she is supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council Investigator Grant 2025665.
Dr Samuel Whittle
Dr Whittle is a senior consultant rheumatologist at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Adelaide, South Australia, a senior lecturer at the University of Adelaide and an adjunct senior research fellow at Monash University. His primary clinical interest is in fibromyalgia and related disorders. He runs the only public hospital fibromyalgia clinic in South Australia. In addition, he is an ANZMUSC Practitioner Fellow, researching living evidence, and has led the development of the Australian Living Guidelines for Adult Inflammatory Arthritis and Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (www.livingguidelines.org). He completes his term as President of the Australian Rheumatology Association in May 2026. He is the founder and inaugural Editor-in-Chief of the Australian Rheumatology Journal. He is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Australia & New Zealand Musculoskeletal Clinical Trials Network (ANZMUSC) and the Cochrane Musculoskeletal editorial board.
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