The staff and Trustees of TB Alert were deeply saddened to hear of the recent passing of our Vice President, Kenneth Citron.
Ken had a long and prestigious career as a Consultant Physician in Respiratory Medicine, during which he broke new ground in the treatment and care of tuberculosis. His lifelong commitment to addressing the scourge of TB was inspired by himself surviving the disease, which he developed early in his medical career, in the days before antibiotics.
Ken’s many achievements include developing a respiratory medicine service in south-west London; chairing controlled clinical trials of anti-tuberculosis chemotherapy, which established short-course chemotherapy in the UK; and producing the first British guidelines on short-course chemotherapy.
During an illustrious career, Ken served as chairman of the Joint Tuberculosis Committee, as an adviser in tuberculosis and respiratory medicine to the Department of Health’s Chief Medical Officer, as president of the British Thoracic Society, and as chairman of the Department of Health’s BCG vaccination committee. In 1987 the Royal College of Physicians of London awarded him the Weber Parks medal for contributions to respiratory medicine and tuberculosis.
He retired from the NHS in 1990 at a time when rates of TB were beginning a steady increase in the UK that would last for 20 years. Recognising the need for a national charity to address TB both in the UK and worldwide, Ken joined with fellow TB professionals to become a founder member of TB Alert in 1999. He continued as Vice President until his passing in September this year.
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