Dame Lyn Chitty

Dame Lyn Chitty, Professor of Genetics and Foetal Medicine at University College London, has made outstanding contributions at the interface of prenatal diagnosis, maternal-foetal medicine and clinical genetics. She remains the only individual in the UK dually trained in both foetal medicine and ultrasound, and clinical genetics. She was the first to demonstrate that routine ultrasound could be applied in a district hospital setting with good sensitivity, whilst maintaining a very low rate of false positive diagnoses. Her leadership has been critical in a series of positive decisions for NHSE implementation, including uses of cffDNA to screen for foetal Rhesus antigen status and Down syndrome as well as bespoke diagnosis of single gene disorders. Every pregnant woman at increased risk in England can now access these tests via the NHS Genomic Medicine Service.