This report presents the latest available information on the incidence of mesothelioma in Australia, along with mortality and asbestos exposure information, using data from the Australian Mesothelioma Registry, the National Mortality Database and the Australian Cancer Database.

Although it is not known exactly how many Australians have dementia, it is estimated to affect up to 436,000 people. In 2017, dementia caused more than 13,700 deaths and was the second-leading cause of death in Australia, behind coronary heart disease (18,600 deaths). Dementia is the leading cause of death for females.

The evidence cited in this paper makes a strong case for a new approach to risk reduction. Science is increasingly clarifying the pathways through which brain and body interactions take place and shedding light on the impacts of disease on the brain and other organs. Australia urgently needs a coordinated, integrated prevention strategy for brain...

This communique was ratified by a diverse representation of people living with dementia, families and carers, at a national Consumer Summit on 26 June 2019.

Recent data indicates that over half a million Australian women have one or more heart, stroke and vascular diseases, and that CVD is the cause of almost one-third of all deaths among women.