I am honoured to receive this recognition. Despite COVID-19 and Brexit, I firmly believe in the value of UK-EU cooperation and the power of integrating wisdoms from the West and the East in catalysing innovation and in making the world a better place.
Dr Qihe Xu, School of Immunology & Microbial Sciences
14 December 2020
King's academic awarded for significant contribution to Chinese medicine
Dr Qihe Xu is one of two scientists who have been awarded a prestigious international prize from the China Association of Chinese Medicine (CACM) and will kindly be donating the prize money to support education in China.
Dr Qihe Xu is a Senior Lecturer in Renal Medicine in the School of Immunology & Microbial Sciences and Director of King’s Centre for Integrative Chinese Medicine (CICM).
The CICM was approved by King’s Health Partners Research Committee in 2013 and aims to catalyse innovative research and education by uniting western reductionist and traditional thinking. As a nephrologist and renal cell biologist, Dr Xu has a focused interest in acute kidney injury and chronic kidney disease.
The 2020 Qihuang International Prize from the CACM seeks to recognise those who have made a significant contribution to the research and development of traditional Chinese medicine internationally. Each year, up to three experts are given this prestigious honour.
Prior to the establishment of CICM, King’s was the leading institution of the Good Practice in Traditional Chinese Medicine (GP-TCM) from 2009-2012, a €1m EU-China collaboration funded by the European Commission, aimed at developing and disseminating good practices in traditional Chinese medicine research. This project gathered a large international collaboration of more than 200 scientists and 107 institutions/enterprises based in 24 countries, and in 2012, it founded the GP-TCM Research Association, a UK charity, which has now established itself as an acclaimed international society and an advisory body of the European Medicines Agency.
I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the success of the GP-TCM project, GP-TCM Research Association or supported the King’s CICM initiative and my career as a researcher and teacher. I would like to dedicate this award to my mentors who have inspired me along the way, especially the late Professor Peter Hylands, who was a great co-worker and enabler. I share this honour with him.
Dr Qihe Xu, School of Immunology & Microbial Sciences
The award from CACM was announced at a ceremony in Beijing, China, earlier this month. Dr Xu has chosen to donate the prize of US $10,000 to his hometown in China to support its education efforts.
About the China Association of Chinese Medicine
Founded in May 1979, CACM is the earliest and largest Chinese medicine academic group in China with 50,000 members across the globe and is an affiliated institution to the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine. It comprises 11 specialised associations in the areas such as internal medicine, paediatrics, and surgery. The Association publishes the China Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Pharmacy and the World Journal of Integrated Traditional and Western Medicine.
In this story
Director of King's Centre for Integrative Chinese Medicine and Senior Lecturer in Renal Medicine