Our Team

Stephen LunnSocial Affairs Editor

Stephen Lunn is The Australian’s Social Affairs Editor, covering social policy issues including ageing, population, disability, welfare, and migration. He has previously been the paper’s environment writer and Tokyo correspondent. He has also worked in public policy advocacy in the private sector, and practised as a lawyer in Australia and the UK. Stephen has a Masters degree in law from the London School of Economics.

@lunns

Latest

ExclusiveRelationships

26 February 2025; A collage of two aged hands wearing wedding rings on a red background with a crack down the middle. Artwork by Emilia Tortorella. Sources: iStock. Ratio 4:3.

What’s the ‘peak age’ for divorce? And why are more long marriages ending?

Divorce in Australia is changing. Why are couples taking longer to call it quits?

Stephen Lunn

Health system failureCaring

The unrecognizable female patient sits alone on her hospital bed while she waits for her nurse. Picture: Getty Images

Woman’s dying days in care were ‘cruel, inhumane’. Why was it allowed to occur?

A dying woman’s first person account of her appalling healthcare after being diagnosed with a terminal illness has sparked calls for urgent change.

Stephen Lunn

BreakthroughMedical

Senior woman lost in thought while looking out through her living room window at home. Picture: Getty Images

Treating Alzheimer’s: are we looking in the wrong place?

Amid an international debate about Alzheimer’s treatments, one Australian company thinks it may have unlocked the secret to slowing the disease’s progression.

Stephen Lunn

explainerDiet

chicken eats feed and grain on eco poultry farm, free range poultry farm

Bird flu: do humans get it (and do I need to hard-boil my eggs)?

Avian influenza has again been found on Victorian poultry farms. It’s not the strain spreading worldwide killing birds, cats and elephant seals – and infecting people – nor last year’s variant that caused national egg shortages. But you do need to understand the concerns.

Stephen Lunn

2026Politics

Mother holding her little cute sleeping baby boy

Gender on the cards for census

Next year’s census will be changed to capture more detailed data on gender and sexuality, and will ask a person’s ‘sex recorded at birth’.

Stephen Lunn

ExclusiveCaring

Caregiver, carer hand holding elder hand in hospice care with sky sunset background. Euthanasia Philanthropy kindness to disabled concept.

Australian MP tells UK parliament VAD prevents suicide

NSW Independent MP Alex Greenwich told a UK parliament committee that voluntary assisted dying prevents suicide. How does this stack up against the data?

Stephen Lunn

ExclusiveMedical

T-Cells Work to Fight Cancer, Immunotherapy, CAR T-cell therapy, 3d renderin

Is a new medical discovery the key to treating cancer?

Scientists have discovered a new type of cell in the body that has a ‘super power’ that can help in the fight against cancer.

Stephen Lunn

ExclusiveHealth

Worried about what’s going on up top? Here’s how to best manage going bald

Balding is optional, the experts say, if you are prepared to seek treatment early enough. We have the latest on balding treatments, and what’s in the pipeline.

Stephen Lunn

ExclusiveMedical

Melbourne, Victoria - January 22, 2025: Pictured on Safety beach. Katie Elson was 26 when her partner noticed a lump in her breast. They thought it was an ingrown hair. A GP said it "doesn't feel too nasty" and told her she was too young to have breast cancer. She was told she could get it checked out but Medicare wouldn't cover it. Katie paid $1000 for a mammogram, ultrasound and biopsy, discovering cancer. She has since had several surgeries including a double mastectomy and reconstruction. Katie later discovered the cancer had spread to her pelvis, and requ ired chemo and radiation. She will be on drugs for life. She is not eligible for PBS support for the drubs because she is too young and doesn't have kids.Her out of pocket costs are well over $50k.Picture: The Australian / Nadir Kinani

What’s behind the rise in early onset cancer (and what we can do about it)

Cancer at younger ages is becoming more common in Australia. What do you need to watch out for?

Stephen Lunn

Australia DayHealth

Melbourne, Victoria - January 21, 2025: Professor Allen Cheng has been awarded an Order of Australia for his service to medicine as an epidemiologist, and for his work in national and international public health policy. Professor Cheng was one of the key experts Australians relied on during the Covid pandemicPicture: The Australian / Nadir Kinani

Epidemiologist Allen Cheng leads medical honours

Covid-19 thrust epidemiologist Professor Allen Cheng into the spotlight. His expertise during the pandemic response been recognised in this year’s Australia Day Honours list.

Stephen Lunn

Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/stephen-lunn