Professor Sir John Burn
- Born
- 6 February 1952
Aspirin is well known as a common painkiller that gets rid of a headache. But to Professor Sir John Burn and his colleagues it is an ongoing object of investigation in the fight against cancer.
Sir John’s research team has carried out a number of studies to try to establish how aspirin helps to prevent cancer. One suggestion is that it uses its anti-inflammatory properties. It is also possible that aspirin acts directly to avert the cell proliferation that is characteristic in cancer, by activating an ‘enzyme’ (a biological catalyst) that regulates the speed of cell growth, among other things. It is also possible that aspirin’s anti-clotting effects may help, as it has been suggested that platelets (blood cells that form clots) shield cancerous cells.
Born and raised in County Durham, Sir John has spent much of his life in the north east of England. He studied medicine at Newcastle University, and spent a year gaining a genetics degree. This was an area that his instinct told him would be rich for investigation in the future.
Initially, Sir John worked as a paediatrician in Newcastle, but was drawn to London to pick up where he left off with genetics. He became a clinical scientific officer for the Institute of Child Health (a research partner of Great Ormond Street Hospital) then returned to Newcastle four years later. He became the first clinical geneticist in the north east when he set up his own clinic at the Royal Victoria Infirmary.
This proved a successful venture, which started off by diagnosing genetic conditions in children. However, there were no cures available for successful diagnoses. Sir John and his colleagues turned their focus to the genetics of cancer.
He and his team were also involved in the research into spina bifida, culminating in the discovery that folic acid supplements during pregnancy can prevent the disease in newborns. He also found the genetic basis for a condition called neuroferritinopathy, which presents with similar symptoms to Huntington’s disease.
A lasting legacy of Sir John can be found in Times Square in Newcastle. He helped to establish the Centre for Life in Newcastle. This is an innovative science village that incorporates space for science research and business, as well as a science centre that provides workshops for school groups and hosts various exhibitions.
This page was written by a Biology: Changing the World volunteer.