XClose

UCL News

Home
Menu

Professor Jane Wardle

28 October 2015

On 20th October 2015 UCL lost a hugely talented, highly respected and greatly loved colleague, Jane Wardle, Professor of Clinical Psychology and Director of the Cancer Research UK Health Behaviour Research Centre in the Faculty of Population Health Sciences.

Jane had chronic lymphocytic leukaemia and sadly succumbed to complications relating to its treatment.

Professor Wardle moved the CRUK Centre from the Institute of Psychiatry to the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at UCL in 1997. At transfer there were 8 staff. Today the Centre houses the largest concentration of health psychology researchers in the UK, with more than 60 staff. The range, novelty and impact of the Centre's contribution to the fight against cancer reflects her personal commitment and leadership. She worked on topics as varied as understanding the uptake of cancer screening, its early detection, and the acceptability of prevention methods, through to dietary behaviour and obesity. The impact of well-being in physical health featured strongly in her work. The breadth of her interests required both qualitative and quantitative methods. The Centre's huge success is reflected in its 40 PhD students and over 600 peer reviewed publications.

CRUK's Sara Hiom has provided a beautifully crafted and fitting tribute to Professor Wardle, offering her own reflections on Jane's contribution and impact; there is also a blog where it is possible to leave memories of Jane. Colleagues are encouraged to visit the link: http://scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org/2015/10/23/professor-jane-wardle-30101950-20102015/

UCL will lower the flag on the Portico in the main quad to half-mast on Thursday 5th November, the day of Jane's funeral. This is in recognition of the loss felt by the whole University of an outstanding colleague. 

If you would like to personally indicate your support for the kind of work that Jane did so successfully, please consider donating to CRUK: http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/support-us/donate/donate-in-memory.  

Our deepest sympathy and thoughts are with her husband, and UCL colleague, Andrew Steptoe, their children, grandchildren and extended family.

Professor Graham J Hart

Dean, UCL Faculty of Population Health Sciences