Richard Scolyer, acclaimed melanoma researcher who tried experimental treatment on his own brain cancer – obituary

At the peak of his career and fitness, the leading melanoma researcher, pathologist and athlete Prof Richard Scolyer received a devastating diagnosis of aggressive, incurable brain cancer. His response was to approach it as one more opportunity to boldly advance medicine by undergoing pioneering treatment on himself.

Scolyer, who has died aged 59, became patient zero in a novel and risky experiment after his diagnosis of a grade-four IDH-wildtype glioblastoma in May 2023. Encouraged by his colleague and co-director of the Melanoma Institute Australia, Prof Georgina Long, Scolyer agreed to be the guinea pig in a revolutionary treatment regime.

Applying what the pair had learned from immunotherapy in their treatment of melanoma, they would try to slow the growth of – and perhaps cure – Scolyer’s brain cancer.

Treatment options for glioblastoma had remained static for almost two decades while the five-year survival rate for advanced melanoma had, in 15 years, improved from 5% to 55% since the use of pioneering immunotherapy. Long wanted to try everything to save her friend and Scolyer was willing to “give it a crack”, knowing that their findings could make a significant difference to the lives of future brain cancer patients. The risk lay in the treatment being untested and the side effects unknown.

“Devising this world-first experimental treatment for my type of brain cancer was bold,” he said, describing his decision to take part as “a no-brainer”.

“Here was an opportunity for us to crack another incurable cancer and make a difference, if not for me then for others.”

Across Australia and the world, the treatment was scrutinised by colleagues and neuro-oncology specialists. Also watching were Scolyer’s thousands of followers on social media, where he posted regular updates about his treatments. He went public early, primarily to keep a record for his children, but in doing so he also shone a light on the significance of the experiment he was undertaking, endearing him to a legion of online supporters.

Initial treatment involved a combination of three immunotherapy drugs before the operation to stimulate Scolyer’s immune system to recognise his cancer cells and kill them before his tumour was surgically resected. After the operation, his brain tissue pathology showed a 10-fold increase in activated immune cells. Follow-up treatment involved a personalised vaccine, specifically targeting his tumour. In early 2025, his case was published in Nature Medicine.

“The great thing though is that we’re able to generate some science by comparing my brain before the immunotherapy and afterwards,” he said. “It gives some scientific hope that this is worth exploring.”

Richard Anthony Scolyer was born in Launceston, Tasmania, on 16 December 1966, to Jenny, a primary school teacher and Maurice, an auto electrician. He and his older brother, Mark, grew up in a loving home where they were encouraged to play sport. Richard displayed his competitive streak from an early age. He built forts and rafts, rode his red Malvern Star bike and had a paper run. At the age of 10 he walked and camped 65km along Tasmania’s Overland Track in five days, carrying his supplies.

He attended Riverside High School, then Launceston Community College, where he excelled, despite his preference for kicking a football over picking up a book. Scolyer’s technique to improve his reading involved comic books and football magazines – he admitted in his 2024 biography, Brainstorm, to never having read for enjoyment.

When Scolyer was very young, his mother had a series of strokes. Several years later, she was admitted to a psychiatric hospital for six months and he and his brother were cared for by relatives. Seeing his mother struggle with her health influenced Scolyer’s decision to become a doctor and he set about achieving that goal with determination and stubbornness.

Scolyer completed his initial medical training at the University of Tasmania before commencing his pathology career in Canberra. He completed his specialist training at Royal Prince Alfred hospital in Sydney and, at 39, became a clinical professor in the faculty of medicine and health at the University of Sydney.

In 2022 Scolyer was ranked the world’s leading melanoma pathologist and is the most extensively published expert in that field.

He was made an officer of the Order of Australia in 2021, and in 2024 he and Long were jointly named Australian of the year.

Scolyer was a tireless runner, cyclist and swimmer who represented Australia at several World Triathlon Championships as well as in other international multisport events. Despite his treatment, he continued to push himself physically, at one point running 5km with an undiagnosed neck fracture after going over the handlebars of his bicycle on the way to a parkrun.

He remained well for almost two years, despite the median recurrence time for his type of tumour after surgery being just six months. But in March 2025, Scolyer announced that his tumour had returned and that his prognosis was poor.

“I don’t need [people] to think of me as courageous or inspirational – just someone who believed in science and, when faced with a terrible diagnosis, tried something bold and new,” he wrote.

His death, three years after diagnosis, outstripped the median life expectancy for his tumour of about 12 to 14 months but, without a clinical trial, Scolyer and Long could not be certain this was due to immunotherapy or other factors.

Long and her colleagues hope Scolyer’s case will lead to a clinical trial and further research of the efficacy of immunotherapy in the treatment of brain cancer.

“I hope that when I’m gone, other brain tumour patients will live longer because of what we’ve tried,” Scolyer wrote.

He is survived by his wife, Dr Kate Nicoll, and their three children, Emily, Matthew and Lucy.