Ms Linda Truong

PATIENT-CENTERED EPILEPSY RESEARCH AND CLINICAL TRIALS

Demystifying clinical trials & increase patient access to new medicines is the focus of Linda Truong’s academic work and research career.

RESEARCH PROFILE

Linda Truong (B.Sc., Hons, M.Phil. (Medicine)) is a pharmacologist, founder of the Refractory Epilepsy Program and Neurology Clinical Trials consultant for the School of Medicine and Public Health at the University of Newcastle. She is chair lead of the Australian Epilepsy Clinical Trials Innovations Hub and is a member of the Human Research Ethics Committee at the University of New South Wales and a member of independent Data Safety Monitoring Boards (DSMBs).

Linda is internationally recognized for her expertise in clinical trial management and education across the Asia Pacific, Australia, and New Zealand with 20 years of research and clinical trial experience in industry, academic and public health hospital settings. She is the recipient of several prestigious research awards, including the 2008 Reg Wait Award and the 2013 Industry ICON Clinical Plc employee award. She is a finalist in the 2022 Western Sydney Women Award - Women in STEM category.

She is a PhD candidate under the supervision of Prof. Jennifer Martin and Dr John Lawson to develop patient-centric approaches to epilepsy clinical trials in Australia. Increasing patient access to clinical trials is important to Linda and motivates her work ethic and vision for building a better future for patients.

MEDICINAL CANNABIS PAEDIATRIC CLINICAL TRIALS

In 2016, Linda established the NSW Health-funded Cannabidiol Refractory Epilepsy Program (REP) which enabled access to cannabis (CBD) for children with treatment-resistant epilepsy. The REP of integrated clinical and research expertise gave 100+ epilepsy children access to CBD across metropolitan, rural, remote, and regional NSW; and provided expert clinical advice to industry and government policymakers. Outcomes included registration of the first CBD medicine (Epidyolex ®) on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods; provided the evidence base for clinicians prescribing CBD; clinical trials training for multidisciplinary research teams; and organized cost management methods for subsidized CBD with industry and regulators. 

From 2016 – 2019, she formed the NSW CBD External Review Committee to enable CBD access to children across four paediatric hospitals and subsidiary rural satellite sites under the NSW Compassionate Access Scheme. In 2021, she developed a local framework to transition epilepsy children prescribed CBD to adult care; and assisted sponsors with preparing PBAC submissions for Epidyolex ®, now approved for children and adults with Dravet Syndrome.  

As a researcher at the NHMRC Australian Centre for Clinical Cannabinoid Research Excellence (ACRE) – an NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence, she continues to promote CBD research and develop tools for consumer-led clinical research.

PASSIONATE ADVOCATE FOR PATIENT-CENTRED EPILEPSY CLINICAL TRIALS AND RESEARCH

Linda is a passionate advocator for including the patient voice in clinical research and is blessed to be part of an excellent group of research professionals and clinician researchers with the same research interests and vision for delivering national clinical trials for epilepsy.

EMPOWERING WOMEN IN RESEARCH 

Since 2010, Linda is a STEMM education spokeswoman in NSW public high schools promoting research in southwest Sydney and has worked with different young women with CALD backgrounds. She continues to provide mentorship and leadership workshops to empower young women to pursue a career in STEMM.