Professor Graham Anderson

The Fellowship is composed of outstanding biomedical and health scientists from across the UK, all recognised for their contributions to biomedical and health science and their ability to generate new knowledge and improve the health of people everywhere. The Academy has welcomed 60 new Fellows this year – the highest number in its history.

As Professor of Experimental Immunology and Theme Lead for Basic Immunology at the University of Birmingham, Professor Anderson is internationally recognised for his work on thymus biology – the gland which produces white blood cells called T lymphocytes, or ‘T cells’. His investigations into how the thymus works within the body’s immune system to tackle infections and cancer has led to new approaches to manipulate thymus tissues that have been adopted worldwide.

Professor Anderson is also a Visiting Professor at the University of Tokushima, Japan, and advisory board member at the KG Jebsen Centre for Autoimmune Disorders and at the Thymus Transplant Programme at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Recent work on thymus regeneration, published in Science Immunology offers new clinical targets for the treatment of human disease and immune system reconstitution.

This is a huge but well-deserved honour that reflects Graham’s outstanding contribution to the field of immunology over the past 25 years.

Professor David Adams, Head of the School of Medical and Dental Sciences

Professor Anderson said: “I’m delighted to be elected to the Academy as a 2022 Fellow. It demonstrates the importance of basic biomedical science in generating new treatments for human disease. My appointment is also recognition for all my lab members, past and present, who have worked so hard to produce ground-breaking science.”

Professor David Adams, Head of the College of Medical and Dental Sciences, said: “We are delighted and proud that Graham has been elected to the Academy of Medical Sciences. This is a huge but well-deserved honour that reflects Graham’s outstanding contribution to the field of immunology over the past 25 years.”

Professor Dame Anne Johnson PMedSci, President of the Academy of Medical Sciences, said: “It gives me great pleasure to welcome these 60 experts to the Fellowship to help to address the major health challenges facing society.

“The diversity of biomedical and health expertise within our Fellowship is a formidable asset that in the past year has informed our work on critical issues such as tackling the COVID-19 pandemic, understanding the health impacts of climate change, addressing health inequalities, and making the case for funding science. The new Fellows of 2022 will be critical to helping us deliver our ambitious 10-year strategy that we will launch later this year.”