Premature birth specialist and long-standing Tommy’s researcher Professor Andrew Shennan OBE has been appointed as Tommy’s Chair of Maternal and Fetal Health at King’s College London.
Professor Shennan takes over from Professor Lucilla Poston CBE, who has held the role since it was created in 1995.
Professor Poston founded the Tommy’s Maternal and Fetal Research Unit, an interdisciplinary research team investigating pre-eclampsia (a disorder which can cause dangerously high blood pressure in pregnancy), preterm labour and the ways in which fetal development can affect health in adulthood. In 2017 she was awarded a CBE for services to women’s health.
Professor Shennan, a world-renowned expert in the prevention of preterm birth, is Professor of Obstetrics at King’s College London and a consultant obstetrician at Guy’s and St Thomas’s Hospital.
Announcing the appointment on World Prematurity Day (November 17), Tommy’s Chief Executive Kath Abrahams said: “We established the Tommy’s Chair of Maternal and Fetal Health at King’s College London to drive forward research into pregnancy complications and preterm birth, and ultimately to stop the devastation of baby loss.
“Professor Shennan’s achievements in this field are outstanding and inspiring, as is his commitment to reducing the global harm caused by babies being born too early and too small.
“We are delighted that he has agreed to take up the role of Tommy’s Chair of Maternal and Fetal Health, providing invaluable support as we work with our community towards improving maternity care and saving babies’ lives.
“We are immensely grateful to Professor Poston for her phenomenal contribution as Tommy’s Chair of Maternal and Fetal Health over almost three decades.
“She has led numerous groundbreaking projects, significantly improving understanding of the impact of maternal nutrition, obesity and gestational diabetes on pregnancy outcomes.”
Professor Shennan has run the Tommy’s Preterm Birth Surveillance Clinic at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital for more than 10 years, providing specialist care to women and birthing people at risk of preterm birth. In 2021, premature births among those attending the clinic fell by 23% year-on-year.
He has led on key tools to predict and prevent preterm birth, including the award-winning QUiPP app developed by Tommy’s researchers, wh