Neale, Kay 05 St Mark’s Hospital: polyposis, and desmoid tumours

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07/10/23

Interview conducted by Professor Tilli Tansey, for the History of Modern Biomedicine Research Group, 18 May 2016, in the School of History, Queen Mary University of London. Transcribed by Mrs Debra Gee, and edited by Professor Tilli Tansey and Ms Caroline Overy. The project management and the technical support (filming and production) were undertaken by Mr Adam Wilkinson and Mr Alan Yabsley, respectively.

Ms Kay Neale MSc SRN (b. 1946) qualified as a nurse at the Royal Free Hospital in 1967 and was appointed as a District Nurse in Islington in 1969. In 1974 she started to work at St Mark’s Hospital as a Research Nurse funded by the Cancer Research Campaign. She worked with Dr Michael Hill, who was studying gut chemistry and flora at the Centre for Applied Microbiological Research at Porton Down, and patients with polyposis were part of the group included in their research. In 1984 she was appointed to work alongside Dr H J R Bussey and Dr Sheila Ritchie in the Polyposis Registry, funded by the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. She gained a Master’s degree in 1985 in survey research methods and helped with the computerization of data, collected since St Mark’s Polyposis Registry began in 1924. This unique database has provided support for both clinical and laboratory based research, including the localization of the APC and MYH genes. She is currently employed by London North West Healthcare NHS Trust. She was a founder member of the Leeds Castle Polyposis Group (1985), which evolved into the International Society for Gastrointestinal Hereditary Tumours (2005), of which she remains the Honorary Administrative Secretary.

The History of Modern Biomedicine Research Group is funded by the Wellcome Trust, which is a registered charity (no. 210183). The current interview has been funded by the Wellcome Trust Strategic Award entitled “Makers of modern biomedicine: testimonies and legacy” (2012-2017; awarded to Professor Tilli Tansey).

The interview is part of the History of the Modern Biomedicine Interviews (Digital Collection).

Access to the History of Modern Biomedicine Research Group’s website:
Link: http://www.histmodbiomed.org/

Access to the ‘Genetics and geneticists’ thematic group of resources:
Link: http://www.histmodbiomed.org/article/genetics-and-geneticists

Access to the transcript of this video interview and its related material:
History of Modern Biomedicine Interviews (Digital Collection), items e2017002-e2017011.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.17636/01018375

Citation of the current clip: Tansey E M (intvr); Yabsley A (prod) (2017) Neale, Kay: 05 - St Mark’s Hospital: polyposis, and desmoid tumours (18-May-2016). History of Modern Biomedicine Interviews (Digital Collection), item e2017007. London: Queen Mary University of London.

Note: Video interviews are conducted following standard oral history methodology, and have received ethical approval (reference QMREC 0642). Video interview transcripts are edited only for clarity and factual accuracy. Related material has been deposited in the Wellcome Library.

© The Trustee of the Wellcome Trust, London, 2016