Lifetime achievement award for 'deeply humbled' top Leeds cancer specialist
University of Leeds researcher has improved the lives of thousands of cancer patients around the world
A ‘deeply humbled’ top cancer specialist from Leeds has been presented with a prestigious lifetime achievement award to recognise his distinguished work over the last four decades.
Professor David Sebag-Montefiore has been recognised by the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO) for his outstanding contribution to rectal and anal cancer research and treatment with radiotherapy.
The University of Leeds researched has seen his work improve the lives of thousands of cancer patients across the globe.
He said: “I'm deeply humbled to receive the award and to be recognised by my peers.
“None of this work is possible without collaboration and without great minds to work with, so I also consider it as acknowledgement of the brilliant teams I work with too.
“I am most proud of the difference I've made to patients with anal and rectal cancer through my research.
“Leeds is a fantastic place to do this, and I still remember many of the thousands of patients I’ve treated over the years.”
Professor Sebag-Montefiore trained in medicine at St Bartholomew’s Hospital Medical School in London, qualifying in 1983. Here he joined the ACT1 trial, the first ever anal cancer trial to test chemo-radiotherapy, which delivers both treatments together.
In 1995, Professor Sebag-Montefiore became Consultant in Clinical Oncology at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, specialising in rectal and anal cancers.
He said: “Over the past 20 years, radiotherapy has advanced dramatically. Today we give a highly precise, targeted, safe and effective treatment, in outpatient appointments of just a few minutes, with substantially reduced side effects. I’m amazed at the advances we've made - the progress is far greater than I expected, and it has fundamentally transformed patient treatment.
In 2010, Professor Sebag-Montefiore became Honorary Professor at the University of Leeds, and in 2012 he became a University Chair, establishing a radiotherapy research group.
Over the years, his research has produced several key findings that would change international standards of patient care for both cancers.
Professor Sebag-Montefiore said: “Within the next 10 years, I think we'll be able to say to a newly diagnosed patient not only that we know how to treat their cancer with radiotherapy, but we know the right dose, and whether they are likely to need additional treatment like new drugs or immunotherapy.
“A patient with cancer at the start of my career would have a vastly different experience if they were diagnosed today. And it’s very exciting to know that in future we can go even further.”