We are thrilled to extend our congratulations to Rebecca Fitzgerald on her election as Fellow of the Royal Society.

"Fellowship of the Royal Society is one of the highest international scientific accolades and we are delighted to see this honour bestowed on Rebecca. To the best of our knowledge, Rebecca is only the second gastroenterologist to receive this honour, the previous recipient being Dame Sheila Sherlock. This honour is well deserved for Rebecca's pioneering work on early detection and prevention of oesophageal cancer. The BSG offers Rebecca our warmest congratulations."

Professor Colin Rees

President-Elect British Society of Gastroenterology

"I am honoured to be elected a member of the Royal Society alongside so many illustrious figures. My scientific interests were sparked by treating patients with advanced cancer who could have had a different outcome if their pre-cancer had been diagnosed. The GI tract is very accessible to diagnose and treat cancer early and with the highly sensitive tools available we can change the outlook for our cancer patients. This is an exciting time for Gastroenterology.”

Professor Rebecca Fitzgerald

Rebecca Fitzgerald is a clinician scientist working on cancer evolution and prevention. She has sought to systematically characterise the metaplastic condition Barrett’s oesophagus and its progression to oesophageal adenocarcinoma. She has shown that Barrett’s oesophagus is a necessary step for cancer development and has defined the alterations that demarcate the transition from benign to malignant transformation. 

Rebecca has applied these insights to develop a minimally invasive cell sampling coupled with biomarker tests for diagnosing Barrett’s and early cancer, that she has taken from proof of concept through to clinical implementation. This technology was awarded the Westminster Medal and is a first in class non-endoscopic approach with low-cost applicability on a population scale.

Rebecca is Professor of Cancer Prevention and Director of the Early Cancer Institute at the University of Cambridge, an EMBO member and a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.

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