Research, such a necessity – Prof. Kypros Nicolaides

We had the history of Fetal Medicine unfolding in front of our eyes on 23rd October when Prof. Kypros Nicolaides narrated his journey over the past 30 years as part of FMF India’s research webinar series.

He gave a very personalized insight into how he observed patterns and their variations, gathered data , collaborated with like minded people and came up with algorithms for Down Syndrome screening. …and then preeclampsia, preterm births, multiple pregnancy, in utero therapy, non invasive prenatal screening ..and you name it all! His training has raised pioneers across the world and it is no surprise that his team has been at the forefront of investigating and finding solutions for almost every obstetric malady.

We feel proud that we practice evidence based medicine but he is the legend who assembled this evidence. It is his toil, hardwork and exemplary research on which the science of Fetal Medicine is based. When you hear “This one slide in my presentation is hard work of over 25 years” it makes you realise the enormity of it all.

What drives him to spend this time in research? How does he balance work, research and personal life? At the root of it all is the passion to make a difference in women’s obstetric outcome. His innovation in screening strategies using very simple markers and then motivating various research teams on finding solutions have transformed our practice.

Acknowledging the deficiencies in government’s allotment towards research activity, his charity- Fetal Medicine Foundation has donated 45 million pounds towards research in this field. He believes India has the potential and his parting words for us were “For India, the answer is collaborative research”.

Thanks to Anita Kaul for conceptualising FMF India’s Research webinar series and bringing her much beloved Professor, mentor, Kypros Nicolaides to share his passion and zeal for research and inspire others to understand why Research is such a necessity and not a luxury.