Professor Chris Day, Vice-Chancellor and President of Newcastle University, will become Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to Health Research and Treatment as announced in the New Year’s honours list.
Chris was Director of the NIHR Newcastle Biomedical Research Centre from 2007, until his appointment to the role of Pro-Vice Chancellor with Newcastle University’s Faculty of Medical Sciences.
The award recognises Professor Day’s research on liver diseases caused by excessive alcohol consumption, obesity and diabetes and the rare side-effects of commonly prescribed drugs. His body of work over more than 30 years, has highlighted the importance of liver disease in patients with obesity and/or type 2 diabetes focussing on genetic susceptibility to these diseases, their progression over time (natural history) and treatment.
As a result of this work, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is now considered to be the most common liver disease in the developed world and one of the top three causes of advanced liver cirrhosis requiring liver transplantation.
A former Consultant Hepatologist on the world-leading Liver Unit at the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust until 2016, with an international reputation in medical research, Professor Day is a Fellow and former Clinical Vice-President of the Academy of Medical Sciences and has appeared on the list of the world’s most highly cited scientists (top 1%) for the last three years.
Professor Day said:
“I am honoured and delighted to receive this award which is a tribute to the wonderful colleagues I have worked with over the past 35 years both at the University and the Newcastle Hospitals, including physicians, surgeons, scientists, nurses and technicians and, last but not least, the patients we have cared for who have taken part in our research studies. These colleagues have ensured that liver and gastroenterology research at Newcastle continues to go from strength to strength, recently being ranked in the top 10 in the world.”
Chancellor of Newcastle University, Imtiaz Dharker said:
“Professor Day has brought honour to Newcastle University and the work that goes on here. On behalf of the University, I would like to congratulate him on this well-deserved recognition, a tribute to the contribution he has made to improving the health of so many people with liver disease."
Dame Jackie Daniel, Chief Executive at Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said:
“It is wonderful to see Professor Day receive this honour for his pioneering clinical and academic work in Newcastle. Throughout his illustrious career he has improved the lives of many local patients, and his clinical research has had a worldwide impact. I am delighted to see him recognised and know that he will continue to be a strong and passionate advocate for the North East.”
Also honoured is Roy Taylor, Emeritus Professor of Medicine and Metabolism in Translational and Clinical Research. His work has shown that Type 2 diabetes is not inevitably progressive and life-long.
He has been awarded an MBE for services to Diabetic Research.
Research by Professor Taylor using innovative magnetic resonance methods has confirmed his Twin Cycle Hypothesis – that Type 2 diabetes is simply caused by excess fat within the liver and pancreas. In the liver, this fat causes a poor response to insulin and it produces too much glucose. In the pancreas, the fat inhibits insulin secretion. By clearly defining the cause of the disease, treatment can be planned to reverse the processes.
The research has established that people can reverse their Type 2 diabetes to the point where they no longer require medication. Importantly, the recent findings show that diabetes stays away providing that the excess weight is not allowed to reaccumulate.
Now a trial of the diet is being carried out within the NHS and will involve up to 5,000 people.
Professor Taylor said:
"This is truly a Newcastle success. The research has only been possible with the enthusiastic support of a great team of doctors, scientists, nurses, dietitians and administrators. The research participants who gave their time and blood, lay in scanners and changed around their lives to participate in research deserve a share of the honours."
Mr Andy Welch, Medical Director and Deputy Chief Executive of Newcastle-upon-Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (NuTH), a BRC partner, has been awarded an OBE for his services to healthcare and patients in the New Year’s Honours list.
Andy has been Medical Director at Newcastle Hospitals, one of the UK’s largest and most successful NHS trusts, for the last decade. As Newcastle’s senior medic he is responsible for every aspect of care, quality and safety for the 1.7million patient contacts that take place every year.
Read the full story on the Newcastle University website
For more on Andy Welch's honour, visit the NuTH website