Prof Mackay is a globally recognised expert in immunological memory. Her innovative work has advanced our understanding of tissue immunity and the role of T cells in protecting against infection and cancer.

Her research has defined how tissue-resident memory T cells are generated and maintained in tissues, how they protect against disease, and how they can be harnessed in new vaccines and treatments.

Significantly, this work has revealed that these cells are critical for cancer control and are linked to improved survival in patients with solid tumours.

Prof Mackay said she was both excited and humbled to be elected an AAS Fellow, which was a wonderful recognition of how important immunology is to so many areas of health.

“Immunology underpins everything – it’s an incredibly complex system and while we’ve come a long way there’s still so much we don’t understand,” said Prof Mackay.

“What excites me is that we’re getting closer to genuinely personalised solutions to conditions that have long been elusive to treatment, by understanding immunity where it actually operates in our tissues rather than relying on a single snapshot in the blood.”

Prof Mackay was recently announced as the inaugural Sir Gustav Nossal Professor of Immunology, an esteemed new role that honours the extraordinary legacy of one of Australia’s most influential scientific pioneers.

Established through a generous gift from the Nossal family, the professorship supports ambitious research that expands the frontiers of human immunology. Sir Gus was himself elected a Fellow of the AAS in 1967.

Prof Mackay recently joined WEHI from the Doherty Institute where she has led a laboratory for the past decade. She continues to hold a joint appointment at the Doherty Institute.

The fellowship is the latest recognition for the esteemed Prof Mackay, who was previously elected as the youngest-ever Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences.

Prof Mackay has been a recipient of the Prime Minister’s Prize for Frank Fenner Life Scientist of the Year, the LEO Foundation Award (Asia-Pacific) and the NHMRC Elizabeth Blackburn Investigator award. With this new accolade she joins more than 20 past and present WEHI researchers who are AAS Fellows.