Benjamin Woolf awarded Cambridge Public Health ECR Prize

November 22, 2023

Congratulations to Benjamin Woolf on being awarded the Cambridge Public Health Early Career Researcher (ECR) prize.

Benjamin (Benji), a Research Assistant working on genetic epidemiology at the Biostatistics Unit, was awarded the prize for his research on causal effects of tobacco smoke exposure.

His submission, “Assessing the Causal Effects of Environmental Tobacco Smoke Exposure: A meta-analytic Mendelian randomisation study,” impressed the judging panel and was selected out of over 50 applicants, earning him the opportunity to present his research alongside distinguished speakers such as Sir David Spiegelhalter at the Cambridge Public Health Showcase 2023 on 7 November 2023.

Benji’s work used multigenerational Mendelian randomisation to assess the effects of second-hand smoking. The idea is that if a child has not inherited a variant associated with smoking from their parents, the only way that it can be associated with their lung cancer is via their parents’ smoking.

Unlike most existing approaches, this unique design can isolate specific effects of second-hand smoking. It therefore provides a new type of evidence to support ‘smoking in public bans’.

Benji was delighted to receive the prize and to have the opportunity to present his work at the very successful showcase event, organised by Cambridge Public Health.

Benjamin Woolf said:

“It was a real honour and surprise to win the prize and be able to present my research.”