Frances Rosemary Balkwill (born 1952) is an English scientist, Professor of Cancer Biology at

Queen Mary University of London Queen Mary University of London (QMUL, or informally QM, and formerly Queen Mary and Westfield College) is a public university, public research university in Mile End, East London, England. It is a member institution of the federal University ...

, and author of children's books about scientific topics.

Early life and education

Balkwill was born in south-west London in 1952, and was educated at

Surbiton High School Surbiton High School is a private day school in Surbiton in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, Greater London, England. It has seven buildings overall including the Boys’ Preparatory School, Girls’ Preparatory School, the Senior Schoo ...

. She obtained a BSc in Cellular Pathology at the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...

and a PhD on leukaemia cell biology in the Medical Oncology Department at

St Bartholomew's Hospital St Bartholomew's Hospital, commonly known as Barts, is a teaching hospital located in the City of London. It was founded in 1123 by Rahere, and is currently run by Barts Health NHS Trust. History Early history Barts was founded in 1123 by ...

supervised by Gordon Hamilton Fairley.

Career

She worked for several years at the ICRF Lincoln's Inn Fields (now

Cancer Research UK Cancer Research UK (CRUK) is the world's largest independent cancer research organisation. It is registered as a charity in the United Kingdom and Isle of Man, and was formed on 4 February 2002 by the merger of The Cancer Research Campaign and t ...

London Research Institute) on the effect of

interferon Interferons (IFNs, ) are a group of signaling proteins made and released by host cells in response to the presence of several viruses. In a typical scenario, a virus-infected cell will release interferons causing nearby cells to heighten ...

on cancer. In 2000 she moved to

Queen Mary, University of London Queen Mary University of London (QMUL, or informally QM, and formerly Queen Mary and Westfield College) is a public research university in Mile End, East London, England. It is a member institution of the federal University of London. Today, ...

, where she is Professor of Cancer Biology and Director of the Centre for Translational Oncology in the Cancer Research UK Clinical Cancer Centre. In addition to her laboratory research, Balkwill has written many children's books about science, illustrated by Mic Rolph, and is Director of Centre of the Cell, a science education centre for children in the new Barts and The London Medical School building in

Whitechapel Whitechapel () is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is the location of Tower Hamlets Town Hall and therefore the borough tow ...

, east London. Her books for children cover a range of topics in biology. For her first book on

HIV and Aids The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

, ''Staying Alive: Fighting HIV/AIDS'' (2002), Balkwill and Rolph travelled to South Africa to carry out research and to determine the educational needs of local communities. 19,000 free copies of the book were distributed throughout South Africa, funded by the publisher

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press was founded in 1933 to aid in Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory's purpose of furthering the advance and spread of scientific knowledge. CSHL Press publishes monographs, technical manuals, handbooks, review volume ...

. From 2008 to 2011, Balkwill served as Chairman of the Public Engagement Strategy Committee at the

Wellcome Trust The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 with legacies from the pharmaceutical magnate Henry Wellcome (founder of Burroughs Wellcome, one of the predec ...

. In 2016 she was a judge for the

Wellcome Book Prize Wellcome Book Prize (2009–2019 — paused) is an annual British literary award sponsored by Wellcome Trust The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 ...

Awards and honours

In 2008 Balkwill was awarded an

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE). Balkwill's books for children ''Cells are Us'' and ''Cell Wars'' won the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

Young People Book Prize in 1991. She won the

European Molecular Biology Organization The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) is a professional, non-profit organization of more than 2,100 life scientists. Its goal is to promote research in life science and enable international exchange between scientists. It co-funds cour ...

(EMBO) Award for Communication in the Life Sciences in 2004. She was awarded the

Michael Faraday Prize ''The Royal Society Michael Faraday Prize and Lecture'' is awarded for "excellence in communicating science to UK audiences." Named after Michael Faraday, the medal itself is made of silver gilt, and is accompanied by a purse of £2500. Backgro ...

in 2005 "for her outstanding work in communicating the concepts, facts and fascination of science in a way that appeals to children of all ages, backgrounds and nationalities, while at the same time maintaining a distinguished research career". In 2006 she was awarded Fellowship of the Academy of Medical Sciences (FMedSci) for her contributions to and achievements in medicine. In 2015 she received an Honorary degree from the University of Bristol. In 2017 she was awarded the Inspiring Leadership in Research Engagement Prize from

. In 2021 she received the Beetlestone Award, recognising her leadership and legacy in the field of informal science learning. In 2024, she was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

(FRS).

Personal life

Balkwill has two children, Jessica and Barnaby. She has 5 grandchildren Sabrina, Esme, Casper, Balthazar and Aurelius.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balkwill, Fran 1952 births Living people English children's writers English women children's writers Fellows of the Academy of Medical Sciences (United Kingdom) Officers of the Order of the British Empire British science communicators Alumni of Queen Mary University of London Alumni of the University of Bristol Academics of Queen Mary University of London English women scientists People educated at Surbiton High School Fellows of the Royal Society