News Story 1: 15 Years of Discovery and Research Impact
 | By Ai Ling Sim-Devadas |
At 8.00am every day, volunteers in sports attire – professionals and seniors alike – stream through the doors of the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (LKCMedicine), ready to participate in SG100K, Singapore’s landmark population health study.
Designed to yield precise insights into chronic diseases in the Asian population, the SG100K study led by Professor John Chambers could pave the way for the development of better tools through precision medicine to predict and prevent chronic diseases among Singaporeans and other Asian populations. This large-scale population study of 100,000 Singaporeans is one of several research programmes with national and global impact at LKCMedicine.
Other key programmes include the Dementia Research Centre Singapore (DRCS) led by Associate Professor Kandiah Nagaendran, which is transforming cognitive health with insights into Asian dementia, and developing innovative tools and apps for diagnostics and prognostication.
Similarly, the TARIPH Centre for Respiratory Research Excellence, jointly led by LKCMedicine Vice-Dean Research Associate Professor Sanjay Chotirmall and Adjunct Professor John Abisheganaden have grown to be a beacon for respiratory science, bridging basic, clinical and population research to tackle chronic lung diseases and improve care pathways through a national lung health study.
Over the past 15 years, scientists at the School have produced high impact findings and breakthroughs that address real world challenges. Nearly one in two publications by LKCMedicine’s researchers consistently appears in the top 10% of research journals in their respective fields.
From the discovery by Associate Professor Anna Barron on how cells in the brain generate energy to clear toxic waste linked to Alzheimer’s Disease, to Associate Professor Tom Carney unravelling the mystery of limb development, to how LKCMedicine Vice-Dean Innovation and Enterprise Associate Professor Andrew Tan and his collaborators at the National Neuroscience Institute (NNI) repurposed existing cancer drugs to conquer glioblastoma resistance and recurrence.
Since its inception in 2010, the School has grown to be an engine of discovery, rigorous science and a hub for world class research. In 2024, Principal Investigators at LKCMedicine secured an all-time high for competitive research funding and awards, surpassing each of the previous three years by more than 100%. This represents the largest amount received by the School since it was established in 2010.
The DNA of Discovery: People, Culture and Collaboration
Breakthroughs take years of work – and they flourish when great people, good science and the right environment come together.
The School is home to cutting-edge facilities, including the Biosafety Level 3 Laboratory (BSL-3), designed for research into pandemic viruses and deadly bacterial infections.
Dean of LKCMedicine, Professor Joseph Sung remarked, “How we achieve so much in just 15 years lies in our DNA. We built a foundation of world-class research facilities, but our true strength is our people and the culture that empowers them. We cultivated a research-friendly eco-system where collaboration is instinctive, there is strong support for our faculty and early career researchers and curiosity, and bold ideas are encouraged.”
This culture has powered discoveries from understanding how ageing impacts memory to identifying the link between adiposity and cognitive health in Asian populations. It has also nurtured the next generation of scientific leaders, as junior faculty progressed to senior investigators and School leaders.
Associate Professor Christine Cheung joined the School in 2017 as the Assistant Professor of Vascular Biomedicine and went on to lead the Vascular Research Initiative. Now double-hatting as Assistant Dean for PhD Studies and Professional Development, she said, “From supportive senior leadership who entrusted me with committee roles, to the generous mentors, the environment is empowering. This collegial culture among peers, combined with progressive policies, provided the foundation to launch the cross-cutting vascular research initiative, bridging us with clinician scientists at TTSH and engineers at NTU. It's this forward-thinking, collaborative ethos that will drive our next 15 years of success.”
Dr Andrew Ang, Director of Research Administration Support Services (RASS), who set up the School’s research infrastructure from day one added, “As the newest medical school, we had been very fortunate and grateful to have benefited from the start-up funding support from NTU and Ministry of Education to set up the research infrastructure and laboratories at the School’s dual campuses. This had supported the development of embryonic research groups which have since bloomed.”
A Future of Global and Asian Health Impact
Looking ahead, the School is sharpening its focus on solutions tailored to Asia while contributing to global medicine. New research programmes in Cancer Discovery and Artificial Intelligence have been introduced, with new research Centres on Cancer Prevention and Ageing in development.
Assoc Prof Chotirmall said, “In the last 15 years, we have delivered discoveries with global and Asian impact. As we look to the future, we will continue to foster a collaborative environment, invest in talents, state-of-the-art research facilities, and involve patient partners to collaborate in patient-centred research, to advance the science of medicine for the good of humanity.”
From the landmark population health study to breakthroughs in dementia, neuroscience, respiratory science, metabolism, cancer and more, LKCMedicine’s first 15 years have laid a powerful foundation.
The next chapters promise even greater impact – for Singapore, for Asia and for the world.