Sir John Burn

Sir John is a Professor of Clinical Genetics at Newcastle University and a recognised authority on the genetics of cancer. His research brought a breakthrough in the prevention of cancer in those with a high risk of the disease – by using aspirin. He led the regional NHS Genetics Service for 20 years and helped to create the Centre for Life which houses an education and science centre. It is also home to the Institute of Genetic Medicine and Northgene Ltd, the identity testing company he set up. He now chairs the DNA device company QuantuMDx. Sir John was a non-executive director of NHS England from 2014 to 2018, and in 2016 he was appointed Executive Chairman of Global Variome Ltd, a not-for-profit company supporting services to the international coordination work of the Human Variome Project which aims to improve health outcomes by unifying data on human genetic variation and its impact on human health. In 2017, he became Chair of Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. He was knighted in 2010 for outstanding services to medicine and in 2014 he was chosen as one of the first 20 ‘local heroes’ to be commemorated with a brass plaque on Newcastle Quayside. The following year, he received the Living North award for services to the North East.