Australian of the Year

A proud Euahlayi and Kooma woman, Grace Toombs is reshaping women's health with agency, dignity and prevention at its core.  

Experiencing crippling pain from age 14, Grace was told by doctors that there was nothing wrong, before finally being diagnosed at 21 with stage three endometriosis. During surgery, a cervical screen revealed high-grade precancerous cells, years before the recommended screening age.  

Learning that endometriosis has an average diagnostic delay of six to eight years, and seeing the many barriers women face to screening, Grace resolved to improve the experience.  

Grace left medical school to study public health, becoming a fierce public health advocate while working across some of Australia's leading health research institutes. She then built June Health, which began as Australia's first at-home STI and cervical screening platform. Today June Health is building a world where no woman ever has to prove she is in pain, through evidence-based education, storytelling and events.