Spotlight on... Veeru Kasivisvanathan

What is your role and what does it involve?

I have two main roles. The first is as an NHS consultant in urological cancer care. I diagnose patients with cancers such as prostate and bladder cancer, and I give them their treatments. This could be using robotic surgery to remove the cancerous organ, or a newer minimally invasive treatment using ultrasound or ice energy called focal therapy, which has been developed by some of our research team.

The second part of my role is as a researcher. I'm an Associate Professor of Urology at UCL, where I lead a team that aims to identify how we can improve the way we diagnose and treat urological cancers. We have particular expertise in delivering clinical trials in humans. Philanthropy has played a huge role in getting this kind of research off the ground and in aligning what patients want with what we as researchers think is important. 

How long have you been at UCL and what was your previous role?

I first joined as an academic clinical fellow in urology in 2011. Over the past 14 years I have always had my research base at UCL, because it is one of the best places to deliver practice changing clinical trials and translational research. But as an NHS clinician and consultant I have worked in several hospitals across London. 

I previously worked as a researcher in vascular surgery at Imperial College London, but as soon as I started some urology work, I fell in love with the speciality. 

What working achievement or initiative are you most proud of?

I think my most impactful piece of work was the clinical trial I ran called PRECISION, which helped to bring about the biggest changes in prostate cancer diagnosis for 30 years, introducing MRI scans in men with suspected cancer. I published the paper as first author in the New England Journal of Medicine and this led to changes in guidelines around the world. 

I am also very proud of founding BURST, which is a national urology research collaborative primarily led by trainees. It has helped us recruit 30,000 patients for studies in the past six years, and all the trainees involved have really improved their research skills. Being able to deliver large meaningful studies whilst training the next generation of researchers is a truly rewarding feeling.

Tell us about a project you are working on now which is top of your to-do list

I am just starting a project that looks at how AI might be used to diagnose prostate cancer. We will be testing this via a clinical trial in humans, in which we’ll assess whether AI can find the cancers that expert clinicians typically would.  We will run it across 20 centres and find out whether AI has a role and if so, what role.

I am co-leading a project called WAMS (Widening Access in Medical Sciences), which is about trying to support and empower people from underrepresented backgrounds to study at UCL and pursue science-related degrees. This is really rewarding work and gives me a chance to meet and speak to students in the local community. 

What is your favourite album, film and novel?

Album: I’m going to pick the first album I ever bought – Oasis, What’s the Story Morning Glory. 
Film: Gladiator (the original!)
Book: The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins – or The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett for a fiction option! 

What is your favourite joke (pre-watershed)?

I enjoyed this joke from the Edinburgh Fringe last year: ‘I was going to sail around the globe in the world's smallest ship, but I bottled it.’

Who would be your dream dinner guests?

I’m a big Man United fan, so it would have to be Alex Ferguson, Roy Keane and David Beckham – mainly to hear the stories about the different lives they’ve all had. 

What advice would you give your younger self?

I would say: if you dream big and work hard, anything is possible.

What would it surprise people to know about you?

I am a big sports fan, which isn’t that surprising – but I am also really into combat sports. I think I enjoy the high stakes – people train so hard for such a long time, and any bout can be over in a split second. 

What is your favourite place?

My favourite place is probably Bright, which is a small village in Victoria, Australia. It is so peaceful. I was there in Autumn and realised it was called Bright for a reason. The whole place is just full of colour – yellow, red and orange. It’s a magical place!