Talking Eyes with Lien Trinh is a groundbreaking Australian podcast dedicated to exploring the latest advancements in eye research. We’ll be translating these golden nuggets into tangible clinical practices, and help non-clinicians navigate their own interests in eye health and future possibilities.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Talking Eyes with Lien Trinh is a groundbreaking Australian podcast dedicated to exploring the latest advancements in eye research. We’ll be translating these golden nuggets into tangible clinical practices, and help non-clinicians navigate their own interests in eye health and future possibilities.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
By 2050, half of the world’s population is expected to be myopic — and that comes with serious risks to lifelong vision. In this episode, host Lien Trinh speaks with Dr Nina Tahhan about how modern lifestyles are reshaping the way our eyes grow, why earlier onset is such a concern, and how cornea-based interventions such as soft myopia-control lenses and orthokeratology can slow progression and protect the next generation from irreversible vision loss.
In this episode:
Key takeaways:
Resources:
This episode is for education only and not individual medical advice. Always follow your own eye-care professional’s guidance for lens type, care system, and wear schedule.
Acknowledgements
Produced with support from Humdinger Studio (Melbourne), Gulwa Recording Studio (Darwin), the University of Melbourne, the Centre for Eye Research Australia, Optometry Australia, and Mivision.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram @talkingeyespodcast for updates and behind-the-scenes content.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Summary
Contact lenses have come a long way. In this episode, Martin Robinson — practicing optometrist of 30+ years and National President of the Cornea & Contact Lens Society of Australia — joins Lien to unpack the journey from early glass and hydrogels to today’s breathable silicone hydrogels, multifocals, toric multifocals, and what’s coming next. We get real about comfort, dryness, hygiene, allergies, risk, and how to match a lens (and a wear schedule) to real life.
Guest
Martin Robinson — Optometrist; National President, Cornea & Contact Lens Society of Australia (CCLSA)
https://www.cclsa.org.au/about/cclsa-board | https://www.martinseyecare.com.au/about-us/
In this episode:
Key resources for this episode:
Cornea & Contact Lens Society of Australia (CCLSA): https://www.cclsa.org.au/contact-lenses/contact-lenses/
Better Health Channel: https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/eyes-contact-lenses
Contact Lens Resource guide for Optometrists: https://www.optometry.org.au/guidelines_practice_notes/contact-lens-resource-guide-free-for-members
This episode is for education only and not individual medical advice. Always follow your own eye-care professional’s guidance for lens type, care system, and wear schedule.
Acknowledgements
Produced with support from Humdinger Studio (Melbourne), Gulwa Recording Studio (Darwin), the University of Melbourne, the Centre for Eye Research Australia, Optometry Australia, and mivision.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram @talkingeyespodcast for updates and behind-the-scenes content.
Share this episode with a glasses-wearing friend 😉
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Guest: Heather Machin, Head of the Lions Eye Donation Service (Melbourne); Chair, Global Alliance of Eye Bank Associations
Eye donation is about science, compassion, and community. Heather Machin lifts the lid on how eye banks honour donors and families, prepare tissue for surgery and research, and help restore sight in Australia and around the world—while navigating ethics, regulation, and the future of bioengineered corneas.
Content Advisory
This episode includes discussion of eye donation in the context of end of life. Listener discretion advised.
In this episode:
Key resources for this episode:
DonateLife Australia (Eye & Tissue Donation Awareness)
Lions Eye Donation Service / CERA
Eye Bank Association of Australia & New Zealand (EBAANZ)
Acknowledgements
Produced with support from Humdinger Studio (Melbourne), Gulwa Recording Studio (Darwin), the University of Melbourne, the Centre for Eye Research Australia, Optometry Australia, and mivision.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram @talkingeyespodcast for updates and behind-the-scenes content.
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Guest: Professor Mark Daniell, Head of Corneal Research, Centre for Eye Research Australia
In this episode, we unpack what a corneal transplant actually involves, why rejections happen, and how modern “layered” (lamellar) techniques like DSAEK/DMEK are changing recovery and outcomes.
Mark also lifts the curtain on tissue-engineered corneas—how expanding a single donor could help treat more people worldwide—and a new hydrogel scaffold that aims to make delicate endothelial surgery faster, safer, and easier to perform in more places.
In this episode:
Key resources for this episode:
Centre for Eye Research Australia: Corneal Transplants: What you need to know
Keratoconus Australia: Corneal Transplantation
Acknowledgements
Produced with support from Humdinger Studio (Melbourne), Gulwa Recording Studio (Darwin), the University of Melbourne, the Centre for Eye Research Australia, Optometry Australia, and mivision.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram @talkingeyespodcast for updates and behind-the-scenes content.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Guest: Larry Kornhauser, President of Keratoconus Australia
In this episode, we flip the usual script and learn about keratoconus through lived experience. Our guest is Larry Kornhauser, co-founder and President of Keratoconus Australia and a tireless advocate for patients nationwide. Larry was diagnosed as a schoolkid in the 1960s, underwent a corneal transplant at 18, and has spent the past two decades helping others navigate a condition that can quietly upend education, work, and daily life.
Larry takes us from classroom vision screenings and early hard-lens fittings to the joy of restored sight, the realities of cost and access, and why second opinions with an experienced fitter can be life-changing. We also unpack what keratoconus is—when the normally dome-shaped cornea thins and bulges into a cone, distorting vision. Larry shares practical advice for patients and families, reflects on the mental-health toll of uncertainty, and explains how advocacy, teaching clinics, and modern treatments like corneal cross-linking have transformed outcomes.
In this episode:
This is a hopeful conversation. Larry’s story shows that with the right clinicians, the right lenses, and timely treatment, most people with keratoconus can study, work, travel, play sport—and simply get on with living.
If you or someone you love has keratoconus, talk to an optometrist experienced in specialty contact lenses and ask about cross-linking assessment and teaching-clinic options in your state.
Key resource for this episode:
The national patient support, advocacy & information body in Australia with
Acknowledgements
Produced with support from Humdinger Studio (Melbourne), Gulwa Recording Studio (Darwin), the University of Melbourne, the Centre for Eye Research Australia, Optometry Australia, and mivision.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram @talkingeyespodcast for updates and behind-the-scenes content.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Guest: Dr. Karl David Brown, Chief Scientist, Centre for Eye Research Australia
The cornea might look simple—a clear “window” at the front of the eye—but it’s one of the most complex and vital parts of vision. In this episode, host Lien Trinh is joined by Dr. Karl Brown, a leading researcher in corneal biology and tissue engineering, to unpack what the cornea really is, how it works, and why it matters.
We cover:
Produced with support from Humdinger Studio (Melbourne), Gulwa Recording Studio (Darwin), the University of Melbourne, the Centre for Eye Research Australia, Optometry Australia, and mivision.
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram @talkingeyespodcast for updates and behind-the-scenes content.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Welcome to Talking Eyes—a podcast about eye care research, clinical insights, and the everyday experiences of people living with vision conditions. Hosted by optometrist Lien Trinh, the show brings together experts and personal stories to make eye health both accessible and meaningful.
Season 1, Talking Retina, took listeners on a journey into the back of the eye—exploring conditions, treatments, and the research shaping how we protect sight. Season 2,
Talking Cornea, has taken a little extra time to create—and for good reason. It comes in two streams: one for everyone on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube, and a practitioner-only edition through Optometry Australia and Mivision, packed with technical pearls for clinical practice.
We’ll be exploring what the cornea is, why it matters, and what happens when it loses transparency, changes shape, or simply dries out.
Episodes shine a light on keratoconus, transplants and eye banks, contact lenses, myopia, and dry eye disease.
Follow the release of the show on Facebook and Instagram @talkingeyespodcast
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Thank you for tuning in to Season 1 Talking Retina. This season, we’ve covered so many things, so a quick recap. Ass Prof Lauren Ayton and I introduced you to the retina and inherited retinal diseases. Prof Andrew Turpin and I discussed vision testing, what AI is and its potential roles and setbacks in eye care. Prof Robyn Guymer helped us understand where research for macular degeneration is at and best practice clinical management. This means, not forgetting to offer clinical trials as an option, if no treatments are currently available to prevent vision loss. Ass Prof Penny Allen took us through the story of bionic eye development in Australia. Prof John Nolan took us through the research for macula protection and the use of macula pigment supplementation. And Ass Prof Anai Gonzalez-Cordero and Dr. Tom Edwards introduced us to the incredible work in vision restoration that is happening now.
It’s been a huge learning journey for me and I hope it’s been one for you as well. As an optometrist, public health practitioner, amateur athlete, globetrotter, and mother in pursuit of living my best life, I set out to create something to make it easier to learn about and put into practice, our most latest understanding of the human eye. A stand out for me recording this season was hearing directly from people who have been affected by vision conditions that we diagnose and treat. I learnt as much from them as I learned from the experts in the field.
So, with this season under my belt and so much learning, not only about the research on eyes, but about podcast creation as well, I’m aiming to bring you something more exciting next season. It’s currently in R&D stage so I can’t say too much, but for Season 2, we will be Talking Cornea. If you’d like to get involved as a contributor or a sponsor, you can reach me on my socials via Instagram and Facebook @Talking Eyes. Follow and share, and subscribe to Talking Eyes to stay updated. I’m Lien Trinh, your host of Talking Eyes.
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How does Lego relate to Genetics? In our final episode of our Talking Retina series, we have a very interesting chat with Dr. Tom Edwards, head of the Gene Therapy Research unit at the Centre for Eye Research Australia about how gene therapy works, how it might look in people receiving treatment, and the process from research to clinical delivery. According to Dr. Tom, multiple gene therapies are expected to roll out over the next 5 to 10 years, so genetic testing and signing up to registers is more important now than ever.
Dr. Tom Edwards and A/Prof Lauren Ayton work closely with the Australian and global community on Inherited Retinal Diseases.
Research sites specialising in IRDs in Australia are:
Additional resources can be found at:
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Associate Professor Anai Gonzalez-Cordero is a research scientist at the Children’s Medical Research Institute who joins me to discuss regenerative medicine and this incredible exciting possibility for vision restoration. We begin our discussion with the very basics of what stem cells can do, how we are now able to produce them without using embryonic tissue, what disease modeling is and excitingly, how we might manufacture and transplant stem cells to restore vision.
Additional resources:
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Have you ever wondered what sort of nutrition advice is best for vision, for eye health and importantly, to prevent eye disease? Feeding your eyes is the very beginning of a conversation on nutrition for eye health. Professor John Nolan, the founder and director of the Nutrition Research Centre in Ireland, joins me to discuss the ingredients needed to improve and retain our vision. We deep dive into John’s areas of expertise: the role of nutrition for vision, cognitive function and the prevention of age-related diseases like macular degeneration. And we dare to venture into provocative territories that challenge the status quo. Food for thought.
The late Michael Moseley is mentioned in this episode, related to his work investigating the legitimacy of Prof. John’s work. We’d like to acknowledge not only his tragic passing this year, but his brilliant contributions to the field of science translation. Vale Michael.
Additional resources:
The Brain and Ocular Nutrition Conference aims to connect the global scientific community as well as nutrition enthusiasts, for the advancement of eye and brain function through nutrition. It is planned for June 2025 in Massachusetts, USA.
Nutritional therapist Hannah Nunn’s channel can be found at www.youtube.com/@nutritionforamd
Michael Moseley’s “Trust Me I’m a Doctor” review of macula pigment supplementation: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/1f4vsRpHghwGWZcSvRN72xM/can-i-improve-my-eyesight
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Associate Professor Penelope Allen is a leading expert in ophthalmology and a pivotal figure in the Australian Bionic Eye project. Join us as she delves into the fascinating journey of this initiative, from its inception and the brilliant minds behind it to the many challenges they have faced along the way. We'll also hear about the outcomes of the first and second clinical trials, offering hope and new possibilities for vision-impaired individuals.
To learn more about this project, visit:
Centre for Eye Research Australia https://www.cera.org.au/research/bionic-eye-and-vitreoretinal-research/
Bionics Institute https://rb.gy/p2t75w
Check out Channel 9’s recent news coverage (May 2024) of the 2nd clinical trials here
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This week I'm joined by special guest Associate Professor Lauren Ayton to discuss inherited retinal diseases.
One time not long ago, there was very little we could do to change the prognosis of inherited retinal diseases. People with Retinitis Pigmentosa. Choroideremia. Leber congenital amaurosis. Stargardt's disease. To name but a few. All conditions we previously monitored, and could only counsel on. But critical advances in research over the last decade now provide hope to people with such conditions.
Resources
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From the godmother of age-related macular degeneration research, this podcast touches on all the things a clinician diagnosing and monitoring AMD needs to know right now about this condition: how it affects a person, staging and recording it, past, current and new treatment, and potential emerging knowledge and innovations.
About our guest Professor Robyn Guymer: Robyn is the Deputy Director of CERA, the Head of Macular Research at CERA, and Professor of Ophthalmology at Melbourne University. She is also a senior retinal specialist at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital. Learn more about Robyn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/robyn-guymer-am-6b498992/?originalSubdomain=au
A standout resource available for all things AMD related, for both clinicians and non-clinicians: https://www.mdfoundation.com.au
Robyn’s current clinical trials for AMD can be found at the Centre for Eye Research Australia: https://www.cera.org.au/current-trials/?
Prof. Robyn and A/Prof Lauren have created an e-learning course on AMD with the latest information on imaging tools, clinical biomarkers and management with the newest emerting treatments and technology. It has been designed specifically for primary eye care practitioners which can be found here: https://study.unimelb.edu.au/find/short-courses/age-related-macular-degeneration-for-primary-eyecare-practitioners/
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This episode explores the intersection of eye health, technology and artificial intelligence with Professor Andrew Turpin, the Chair of Ophthalmic Data at the Lions Eye Institute jointly appointed at Curtin University. Andrew is a computer scientist with niche skills in eye health, whose research adds a unique perspective to eye care and the advancement of eye care technologies.
Together, we delve into the fusion of eye health and computer science, with an emphasis on AI-driven healthcare solutions.
Key topics include:
Here are some of Andrew’s recommendations for interesting insights into AI:
Artificial Intelligence and Human Life: Five Lessons for Radiology from the 737 MAX Disasters: https://pubs.rsna.org/doi/10.1148/ryai.2020190111
Lessons learned from translating AI from development to deployment in healthcare: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-023-02293-9
And an interesting diabetic retinopathy project: https://docs.aireadi.org/ because they have created a new license for data use that restricts sharing the data but also includes text about identifying individuals and sharing the data inadvertently. Anyone who is thinking of using/releasing data should look at it.
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In our inaugural introductory episode on the retina, we chat about historical perspectives on the role of the retina in vision, its important features, how we can see them, and things that might go wrong. We try not to blow your minds too much in this introductory episode, but my guest Lauren, just cannot help herself!
About our guest A/Prof Lauren Ayton: Lauren co-leads the Retinal Gene Therapy Unit and is the Head of the Vision Optimisation Unit at the University of Melbourne. Her research interests are inherited retinal disease (IRD), low vision, and interventions to assist people with IRD, including gene therapy. Trained as an optometrist, Lauren couldn’t help but continue asking all the hard questions and trying to find the answers! Learn more about Lauren here.
Show resources:
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I’m Lien Trinh, your host of Talking Eyes, a groundbreaking Australian podcast dedicated to exploring the latest advancements in eye research. We’ll be translating these golden nuggets into tangible clinical practices, and help non-clinicians navigate your own interests in eye health and future possibilities.
You, may be a vision tester. You, may be experiencing vision impairment. You, may have a loved one losing their sight. For you, I am thrilled to launch Talking Retina, the first of our podcast series, to offer an inside look into the dynamic world of retinal research. Our guests are true visionaries, dedicated to bridging the gap between scientific discovery and real-world impact. Vision and vision research is complex, but there are endless possibilities.
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