Professor Irene Leigh, CBE, FRSE, FRCP, DSc, F Med Sci

Profile

Following appointment as Consultant Dermatologist at the London Hospital Professor  Irene Leigh established the Centre for Cutaneous Research at Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London (BLSMD) which developed into a premier research centre in skin biology and disease.  During this period she became Professor of Dermatology (1992), Professor of Cell and Molecular Medicine (1999), Research Dean (1997-2002), Joint Research Director (2002-5), Dean for e-learning (2005-6).  She was appointed Head of College and Vice Principal of Dundee University in November 2006 and re‑established a research laboratory in Dundee including the CR-UK Skin Tumour Laboratory.  She was President of the Association of Physicians of UK and Ireland in 2010-11 and a council member of the Academy Medical Sciences 2009-12. She returned to full time research between Dundee, with programme grants from ERC and CR-UK, and London including a major Wellcome Trust strategic award in 2012. Her research has focused on keratinocyte skin cancers; genetic skin disease and tissue engineering. She served on multiple grant giving bodies including the ERC and has been awarded multiple medals from international societies.  She was honoured with an OBE for services to medicine in 2006 and a CBE in 2012. She returned to QMUL as Professor Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Interim Dean of Dentistry in 2018 and became International Dean for Medicine and Dentistry in 2019-2022. She acted as Interim Director of Institute of Population Health in 2020-21 and Interim Vice Principal for health in 2021. She is currently continuing research into Squamous Cell Carcinoma as part of the Barts Centre for Squamous Cancer, generously funded by Barts Charity.

Research