Yieldbroker will be supporting two special initiatives on our annual Charity Day on 26 September; both compelling causes that will be impacted substantially by our contribution.

On this day, all trading revenue is donated! The Charity Day raised over $100,000 last year and is a part of the firm’s commitment to charitable donations which has spanned 20 years.

What is Rett Syndrome?

Rett Syndrome (RTT), seen almost exclusively in females, is a genetic disorder in which the brain does not mature in the way it should. Brett Anslow (Colonial), has a daughter - Holly - with Rett Syndrome. At the current rate of funding, research to find a cure will take between 5 and 10 years. With increased fundraising from Yieldbroker, Holly may see a cure in less time!

For most affected children, their early development appears normal but then slows down or suddenly halts. This period of their lives can be marked by many serious challenges including loss of communication, mobility, intellectual disability and problems breathing.

Holly is high functioning and uses eye gaze to communicate. She, fortunately, has no signs of scoliosis or seizures which characterise the symptoms of many Rett patients. Sadly, girls affected by RTT rarely reach adulthood, with 15% losing their lives by the age of 10.

Westmead Children’s Hospital is the only place in Australia where Rett Syndrome is being researched. Dr Wendy Gold’s work involves creating Rett mice and systematically working through the tens of thousands of proteins that need to be tested to move the gene therapy from mice to humans.

The treatment that is being developed is a gene therapy - they splice the mutated gene and replace with a healthy one. Gene therapy is a cutting edge science first successful when they cloned Dolly the sheep.

Will there be a cure in Holly’s lifetime?

With current levels of funding, the research could take up to 10 years. Increased fundraising activities such as those we are initiating may see this timeline as much as halve.

While a cure will not reverse the damage already done, it is predicted that small improvements in body function, movement and communication will improve quality of life for children like Holly. Further to this, the cure should prevent any further impact on sufferers.

Even better, Yieldbroker will be donating the raised funds to Westmead Children’s Hospital on their annual Radiothon day where all money raised will be matched dollar for dollar - doubling the contribution to this extremely worthwhile cause.

What is Neurofibromatosis (NF)?

NF is a disease that impacts 10,000 people across Australia, with sufferers developing tumours that can cause severe disfigurement, blindness and deafness. Sadly, such disfigurement occuring in children leads to a high suicide rate during formative years.

Yieldbroker continues its support of NF following on from last year’s hugely successful Charity Day. Our contribution will be used for research and clinical trials that reduce the development of life-threatening tumours.

If you’d like to contribute to one or all of these worthwhile causes, there are two ways you can get involved:

1. Trading on the Yieldbroker platform on Sept 26 for Charity Day - mark your calendar now!

2. Donate directly to Rett Syndrome or Neurofibromatosis research at Westmead Children’s Hospital.

What’s next?

Yieldbroker will present the money raised to Westmead Children’s Hospital during their annual Radiothon on 18 October 2019, where the funds will be doubled.