UCL academic named British Heart Foundation’s Chief Scientific and Medical Officer

Bryan Williams Professor Bryan Williams (UCL Institute of Cardiovascular Science) has been appointed the British Heart Foundation's (BHF) first Chief Scientific and Medical Officer. Starting in the autumn, he will succeed Professor Sir Nilesh Samani (Medical Director) in leading the BHF's research and medical strategy. Professor Williams will continue as a UCL professor of medicine and honorary consultant physician at UCLH, but will step down from his leadership roles as director of the NIHR UCLH Biomedical Research Centre and director of research at UCLH, where he has had oversight of over £300m of NIHR research funding over the past 10 years and has led one of the largest and most successful biomedical research centres in Europe. Professor Williams's own research and clinical practice is in the field of high blood pressure (hypertension) in which he is recognised as one of the world's leading authorities and is current President of the International Society of Hypertension. Over a 30-year research career, he has led research and numerous national and international clinical trials that have changed clinical practice worldwide. This has included identifying the optimal drug treatment for resistant hypertension, which affects over 100 million people worldwide. Relinquishing his leadership roles at UCL and UCLH means that he will be able to continue his research at UCL and clinical practice at UCLH within a much-reduced time commitment when he takes up the BHF role later this year.