Professor Michelle Farrar is a paediatric neurologist at Sydney Children’s Hospital and Professor of Paediatrics at UNSW Sydney, with international recognition for her work in spinal muscular atrophy. She completed her PhD on the pathophysiology of SMA and has been a leading clinician-scientist in the development, introduction, and evaluation of disease-modifying therapies, as well as the implementation of newborn screening for SMA in Australia.
Beyond SMA, Professor Farrar leads major national research programs in paediatric neuromuscular and neurological disorders, genomic medicine, and rare diseases. Her work spans biomarker discovery, treatment safety and outcomes, ethics and decision-making, and health-system readiness for advanced neurotherapeutics. She holds multiple NHMRC and MRFF grants, serves on national and international advisory committees, and is Medical Director of Muscular Dystrophy NSW, with a strong focus on translating research into improved care for children and families.
