The Nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM) Australia Research Network is brought to you by leading clinicians, researchers and scientists.
Over the course of this event, attendees will have the opportunity to review clinical aspects of NTM diagnosis and management, hear about the latest research being conducted and to discuss research priorities and opportunities for collaboration.
The objectives of the forum are to:
- Advance and disseminate clinical knowledge in the field of NTM
- Disseminate the latest advances in translational research from around the world.
- Provide a forum for researchers to present and discuss their work
- Facilitate collaborations across Australia to enhance the quality and outcomes of research in this field.
Overview
Thursday: Core curriculum
This program is aimed at clinical and allied health professionals, with topics such as epidemiology, diagnostics, host susceptibility, radiology/laboratory developments, disease management, drug toxicity and the evidence behind the guidelines, plus case discussions and approaches for extrapulmonary or less common NTM infections.
Friday: Research focus
This program will showcase the latest research developments relevant to NTM, including research studies and clinical trials in epidemiology, microbiology, diagnostics, host-pathogen interactions and novel therapies.
Program information
Please bookmark this webpage to check for the latest updates to the program. The full program, including invited speaker topics, selected abstracts and speaker bios will be available at a later date.
Registration
Registration for the NTM Symposium 2026 is now open. Early bird registration ends on 21 August 2026.
Pricing (AU$)
| Early Bird (before 21/08/2026) | Late (after 21/08/2026) | ||
| 1 Day | 2 Days | 1 Day | 2 Days |
Attendee | $200 | $300 | $250 | $450 |
Student | $50 | $100 | $50 | $100 |
Abstracts
Abstract submission is open.
Abstract submission closes at 17:00 AEST on Friday 28 August, 2026.
Please submit your abstracts by emailing to ntm@uq.edu.au in the following format:
- 1x A4 page
- 12pt Times New Roman font
- Sections:
- State your preference for Poster, Oral, or Either
- Title
- Authors (Last Name, Initial(s) and underline the presenting author
- Affiliations (use a superscript numbering system to reference authors)
- For the body of the abstract, use such headers as Background, Aims, Methods, Discussion and Conclusion where relevant
Figures and tables are welcome but must fit on the same A4 page.
Invited international speakers
Pamela J. McShane, MD
National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
Pamela J. McShane, MD, is staff clinician at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. She is a Chicago area native who attended Loyola University for both her undergraduate and medical doctorate degrees. She received the Health Professions Scholarship from the U.S. Military for medical school. After completing an internal medicine residency, Dr McShane entered the U.S. Air Force as a staff physician. During her 4 years of active duty, she deployed twice to Iraq, where she served as a critical care physician in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Following her military service, Dr McShane returned to Chicago where she completed her pulmonary and critical care medicine fellowship at the University of Chicago. During her fellowship training and subsequent faculty years at the University of Chicago, she developed a regional research database and clinic in bronchiectasis and nontuberculous mycobacterial lung disease.Dr McShane went on to work in the field of nontuberculous mycobacterial lung disease at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Tyler, TX, a nationally renowned acid fast bacilli lab and clinical referral center. There, she was principal investigator for approximately a dozen clinical trials in bronchiectasis and pulmonary NTM disease. Dr McShane served as associate editor for CHEST and the Journal of Clinical Tuberculosis and Other Mycobacteria. She served as chair of the U.S. National Bronchiectasis Research Registry Consortium from 2023 until 2025.
Shannon Kasperbauer, MD
National Jewish Health, Denver, Colorado
Shannon H. Kasperbauer, MD, is Professor of Infectious Diseases at National Jewish Health and Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. She is the Director of the Infectious Disease clinic and Adult Day Unit Operations at National Jewish Health. We evaluate over 1,000 patients a year with bronchiectasis and chronic pulmonary infections including nontuberculous mycobacterial infections.
Dr. Kasperbauer earned her medical degree at Wright State University School of Medicine in Dayton, OH. She completed her internal medicine training, and infectious diseases fellowship at the University of Colorado. Dr. Kasperbauer has numerous publications, including book chapters and journal articles in the field of bronchiectasis and mycobacterial infections. She has given many presentations on infectious diseases, both nationally and internationally.
NTM Forum Organising Committee
Professor Rachel Thomson, MBBS, Grad Dip (Clin Epi), PhD, FRACP
Respiratory and Sleep Physician; Head of Greenslopes Unit, The University of Queensland; and Head of the Mycobacterial Diseases and Bronchiectasis Research Group, Gallipoli Medical Research
Dr Andrew Burke, FRACP, DTMH, MPH
Infectious Disease and Thoracic Physician, Director of Infectious Disease, The Prince Charles Hospital, Brisbane
Amy Pham, BSc, PhD
Senior Research Officer, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Felicia Goh, BSc, PhD
Senior Principal Researcher, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Melinda Ashcroft, PhD
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Scott Bell, MBBS, MD, FRACP
Professor and Thoracic Physician, The Prince Charles Hospital, Brisbane, Australia
Alice Sawka, MBBS, MPH, FRACP
Respiratory Specialist, Royal Adelaide Hospital, Adelaide, Australia
Geoffrey Eather, MBBS, FRACP
Medical Director, Metro South Clinical Tuberculosis Service, Department of Respiratory, Sleep and Mycobacterial Medicine, Princess Alexandra Hospital
Malcolm Wilson, BSc, MBBS, FRACP
Respiratory Specialist, Metro South Clinical Tuberculosis Service and Logan Hospital, Brisbane, Australia
Tim Baird, BSc, MBBS, DTM&H, FRACP
Respiratory Physician, Sunshine Coast University Private Hospital, Australia
Michael Holt, BSc, MBBS, FRACP
Respiratory Physician, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital and Greenslopes Private Hospital, Brisbane, Australia
Ieuan Evans, MRCP, PhD
Consultant Thoracic Physician, The Prince Charles Hospital, Brisbane, Australia
Claire Wainwright, MBBS, MRCP, FRACP, MD
Paediatric Respiratory Physician, Queensland Children’s Hospital, Brisbane, Australia
Victoria Grey, MBChB, MPH
Infectious Diseases Physician, Logan Hospital and Metro South Clinical Tuberculosis Service, Brisbane, Australia
Shaun Kang, MBBS (Hons), MRCP
Respiratory Physician, Princess Alexandra Hospital and Gold Coast University Hospital, Australia
George Denby
Sleep Disorders Fellow, Department of Respiratory, Sleep and Mycobacterial Medicine, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Brisbane, Australia
Mathew Twining
Mycobacterial Diseases Fellow, Brisbane, Australia