Role model: BMJ profiles Professor Caroline Moore
15 August 2019
The BMJ profiled Professor Caroline Moore (ĀŅĀ׊ć Surgery & Interventional Science) as a role model for their careers section.
Caroline Moore, professor of urology at ĀŅĀ׊ć, says that her first failure was not getting the A levels required to become a vet. Her second was failing her first year medical examinations a year later. āI was basically having too much fun and not doing enough work,ā she says. āI would turn up to all the lectures, but on two hoursā sleep, which I now know is ridiculous.ā
She didnāt fail anything again until after medical school. āI passed my first surgical exam when I was pregnant with my first child but failed my second Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons exams following the birth of my second child,ā she says. āI worked long hours and had a long commute so it was quite challenging.ā
She once declared that she āwouldnāt do research, wouldnāt do prostate cancer, and wouldnāt work in London.ā After passing her membership exams at the second attempt, however, she got a research fellowship from the Royal College of Surgeons and decided to focus on urology.
Moore started her research career assessing photodynamic therapy for prostate cancer. This work formed her doctoral thesis and led to the only completed randomised trial comparing focal treatment with active surveillance. She went on to publish the first study using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to assess response to treatment in early prostate cancer.
āHelping to change the minds of people, both nationally and internationally, on the use of MRI for prostate cancer detection and changing the guidelines is the thing Iām proudest of,ā she says.
Mooreās father was referred for prostate cancer assessment in Wolverhampton five or six years ago. At the time, not everywhere was using MRI before biopsy but Wolverhampton was. āHe got good treatment and heās doing fine,ā she says. āIt really hit homeāthe thought that the work Iād been doing would really change how people are looked after across the country and internationally.ā
Moore has juggled her career with bringing up four children. āItās about working out your priorities,ā she says. āSometimes one of the children needs something so work has to become a bit less of a focus and sometimes if Iām working on a big project or paper then I have to concentrate on that for a bit.ā
If she has any advice to offer others it is to āfind out what you love and stick with it even through the hard times.ā Moore adds, āParts of my training were less enjoyable than others but itās about finding a path through that and taking time to enjoy it along the way.ā
Professor Mark Emberton nominated Professor Moore:
āCaroline Mooreās single mindedness saw the development of the only completed randomised trial comparing focal treatment with active surveillance. You could say that this is the moment that she found her calling.
It is this dedication, drive, and vision for the end objectiveābenefiting patientsāthat I admire so much. I also admire Carolineās ability to corral teams through her infectious determination, balanced with a touch of humour.
Importantly, Caroline is not just a role model to her colleagues in urology, but, working with her, I can see that she is a trail blazer for women in science. As the first female professor of urology in the UK, she is a role model for all women considering careers in medicine and all women at ĀŅĀ׊ć.ā
Professor Emberton is dean of the ĀŅĀ׊ć Faculty of Medical Sciences and works with Professor Moore on studies investigating MRI as a diagnostic tool for prostate cancer.
This profile originally appeared theĀ µž²Ń“³Ģżon 13 August.
Links
- ĀŅĀ׊ć Surgery & Interventional Science
- ĀŅĀ׊ć News: Prostate cancer trial could lead to national screening programme
- ĀŅĀ׊ć News: Prostate cancer guidelines changed to reflect ĀŅĀ׊ć trial findings
- ĀŅĀ׊ć Medical Sciences
Image
Professor Caroline Moore (credit: Richard H Smith)
Media contact
Henry Killworth
E: h.killworth [at] ucl.ac.uk
Tel: + 44 (0) 207 679 5296