The UK DRI and Health Data Research UK (HDR UK), working in partnership with Dementias Platform UK (DPUK), are delighted to welcome Professor Cornelia van Duijn and Professor William Whiteley as Research Director and Associate Research Director for Brain Health, to lead a UK-wide data and infrastructure approach dedicated to brain health research.
As incoming Research Director and Associate Research Director, Professors van Duijn and Whiteley will work closely with the Directors of HDR UK and UK DRI, alongside DPUK, to identify and prioritise key areas of work in brain health data science research to accelerate trustworthy research data use for neurodegeneration, neurological conditions and to support long-term brain health. Professors van Duijn and Whiteley will initially provide leadership and strategic direction for the Dementia Trials Accelerator. Professor Whiteley will also push forward further partnership discussions to inform the MND Research Data Catalyst.
To fully realise the promise of research to transform the lives of people living with dementias and related neurodegenerative conditions, there is an urgent need to better map, understand and unlock the extraordinarily rich health data assets that exist in the UK.
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Professor Cornelia van Duijn and Professor William Whiteley
Large-scale data has the potential to accelerate research that benefits patients and carers living with devastating neurodegeneration and neurological conditions – from Alzheimer’s disease to motor neuron disease (MND) to the consequences of traumatic brain injury and ageing.
Professor van Duijn said:
“I am delighted to be appointed as the Research Director for Brain Health in an era of unprecedented progress in the early detection and treatment of neurological and neurodegenerative disorders. “One of the major challenges is to build up the data infrastructure needed to harness the rapid developments in blood-based biomarkers and electronic data collection. I look forward to working in partnership with colleagues at HDR UK, the UK Dementia Research Institute and Dementias Platform UK, who are at the forefront of data science research and innovation in brain health.”
Professor Cornelia Van Duijn is a statistical geneticist and epidemiologist, working at the forefront of genomics research of Alzheimer disease and dementia. She is Theme Lead for Big Data and Computational Sciences of the 4th Oxford British Heart Foundation Center of Excellence (BHF-CRE4). She is also co-lead (with Professor Masud Husain) for the Dementia Research Oxford (DRO) consortium; and co-leads the HDR UK Oxford regional network with Professor Eva Morris. She is also a fellow of the UK Academy of Medical Sciences, and a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW).
Professor Whiteley said:
“Many potential treatments for dementia and other neurological conditions are in development. For people affected to benefit as soon as possible, efficient clinical trials are needed. The UK has tremendous data resources that not only promise to make new trials more efficient, but also to facilitate studies of the care and causes of these conditions. “I’m delighted to be part of the HDR UK brain health team to work with trialists, data custodians and data scientists to realise the potential of these data to improve care and research."
Professor Whiteley is Professor of Neurology and Epidemiology at the Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences at the University of Edinburgh, and a consultant neurologist at NHS Lothian. He is an Associate Director of HDR UK, working on the Stroke Data Catalyst at the British Heart Foundation Data Science Centre. His research interests lie in big data, public health, and disability caused by stroke and dementia. He is a passionate advocate of an open science approach, collaboration, and addressing problems that have clinical impact.
Professor Andrew Morris, Director of HDR UK, said:
“Over one million people are living with a neurodegenerative disease in the UK – diseases that are devastating for sufferers and their families. It is terrific to welcome Professors van Duijn and Whiteley to HDR UK’s Brain Health team, which will strengthen the partnership with the UK DRI and DPUK. Such collaborations are vital, if we are to synthesis the enormous power of health data with expertise in the biology and clinical science of neurodegeneration. Only creative multi-disciplinary teams will power solutions for dementia, MND and other debilitating neurological conditions.”
Professor Siddharthan Chandran, Director of UK DRI, said:
“To fully realise the promise of research to transform the lives of people living with dementias and related neurodegenerative conditions, there is an urgent need to better map, understand and unlock the extraordinarily rich health data assets that exist in the UK. I am delighted that Professors van Duijn and Whiteley, international leaders in health data, are leading this important initiative.”
Professor John Gallacher, Director of Dementias Platform UK, said:
“I am delighted to hear that Professor van Duijn and Professor Whiteley will be taking on these roles. Dementias Platform UK looks forward to working closely with them, HDR UK and UK DRI, to address the challenges surrounding data infrastructure for brain health research.”