Professor Paul Foster

A consultant ophthalmologist at the world famous Moorfields Eye Hospital for 20 years, Prof Paul Foster has been named as one of the 100 most influential ophthalmologists three times over the last 2 decades. He has published over 300 peer-reviewed papers, 16 book chapters and 7 journal editorials. He has co-authored two policy-defining clinical trial manuscripts in The Lancet, 10 papers in Nature titled journals, and has been awarded £ 38.5M in research grant funding. Prof Foster's research has led to him assuming a leading role in developing national and global policies for glaucoma care (for the UK's Royal College of Ophthalmologists, and the World Glaucoma Association). He was elected a member of the Glaucoma Research Society, which is limited to 100 active members worldwide, promoting excellence in glaucoma research. He has received awards recognising his contribution to ophthalmology in the UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Singapore and China. 

Prof Foster has been at the forefront developing techniques and policies for treatment of glaucoma, and cataract surgery in glaucoma for 20 years. As a trainee, Prof Paul Foster carried out a 4 year research fellowship at University College London's Institute of Ophthalmology, and Singapore National Eye Centre, carrying out foundational research into glaucoma glaucoma surgery for Prof Sir Peng Khaw, which helped define the current technique for trabeculectomy, the mainstay of modern glaucoma surgery. Prof Foster's PhD focussed on angle-closure glaucoma, devising the standard classification scheme for this important condition, and demonstrating that the condition was much more common than previously suspected. Further research into risk factors and natural history of angle-closure glaucoma led to the design of the ZAP trial, a six year clinical trial which has defined global policy on preventive laser treatment for angle-closure glaucoma. A further major clinical trial (EAGLE) has demonstrated the central role for lens extraction (cataract) surgery in moderate to late stage angle-closure glaucoma, in which Prof Foster was the lead recruiting surgeon. His clinics have delivered cutting edge care to over 65,000 people of the last 2 decades.