Ron Zimmern created the original Public Health Genetics Unit in 1997 and its successor the PHG Foundation in 2007. He stood down as Chief Executive in September 2009 to become Chairman of the Foundation’s Board of Trustees, where his role is in governance and strategic development.
Ron has enjoyed a distinguished career in medicine, public health and policy, and is the pioneer of public health genomics in the UK. He was Founding Chairman of GRAPH-Int, the public health genomics international network, until 2010 and continues to be active in an international leadership role, working closely with colleagues and institutions around the world, including in the USA, Canada, Europe and Hong Kong.
Ron trained at Cambridge and London, specialising in neurology before entering public health medicine in 1983. During the 1980s he took a law degree and developed an enduring interest in the law and ethics of medicine. He was Director of Public Health for Cambridge and Huntingdon Health Authority from 1991 to 1998, with a special interest in the strategic planning of health care, the relationship between clinical services and teaching and research, and priority setting in the NHS.
Ron has previously served on the Department of Health’s Genetics Commissioning Advisory Group; the Steering Group for the National Genetic Testing Network, the Joint Committee of Medical Genetics of the Royal Colleges; the Council for the British Society of Human Genetics; and as Chairman of the Diagnostic and Screening Panel of the UK’s Health Technology Assessment programme.
He has close links with the University of Cambridge and Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Trust, having formerly held posts as an Associate Lecturer and Honorary Consultant in Public Health Medicine at Addenbrooke's Hospital. Ron is also a Fellow of Hughes Hall, Cambridge, and holds an honorary Professorship at the University of Hong Kong.
Beyond public health genomics: proposals from an international working group
Boccia S, Mc Kee M, Adany R, Boffetta P, Burton H, Cambon-Thomsen A, Cornel MC, Gray M, Jani A, Knoppers BM, Khoury MJ, Meslin EM, Van Dijn CM, Villari P, Zimmern R, Cesario A, Puggina A, Colotto M, Ricciardi W.
Eur J Public Health. 2014 Dec; 24(6):877-9.
Alberg C, Hall A, Hallowell N, Zimmern R.
Journal of Medical Ethics. Epub 2014 Jul 18.
Issues concerning the evaluation and regulation of predictive genetic testing
J Community Genet. 2014 Jan; 5(1):49-57.
Recommendations for returning genomic incidental findings? We need to talk!
Bennett R, Botkin J, Burke W, Clayton E, Henderson G, Holm I, Jarvik G, Khoury M, Knoppers B, Matheny A, Press N, Ross L, Rothstein M, Saal H, Uhlmann W, Wilfond B, Wolf S, Zimmern R.
Genet Medicine. 2013 Nov; 15(11):854-9.
Christianson A, Zimmern R.
J Community Genet. 2013 Jun 23 [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 23794314
Next-generation sequencing in the clinic: are we ready?
Biesecker L, Burke W, Kohane I, Plon S, Zimmern R.
Nat Rev Genet. 2012 Nov; 13(11):818-24. doi: 10.1038/nrg3357
The impact of genomics on public health practice: the case for change
Khoury M, Zimmern R.
Public Health Genomics. 2012; 15(3-4):118-24.
Genomics and individuals in public health practice: are we luddites or can we meet the challenge?
Journal of Public Health (Oxf). 2011 Dec; 33(4):477-82.
Burke W, Hall A, Karmali M, Khoury M, Knoppers B, Meslin E, Stanley F, Wright C, Zimmern R.
Genetics in Medicine. 2010 Nov; Vol 15.
Regulating direct-to-consumer genetic tests: What is all the fuss about?
Genetics in Medicine. 2010 Oct 1 [Epub ahead of print]
Genomics and public health: translating research into public benefit
OLeary P, Zimmern R.
Public Health Genomics. 2010; 13(4):193-6. Epub 2010 Apr 15.
Addressing congenital causes of disability
Nacul L, Moorthie S, Kapila M, Zimmern R.
The Lancet. 2010 Jan 30; 375(9712):374.
Hong Kong Medical Journal. 2009 Oct;15(5):324-5.
A new strategic phase for genomic medicine in UK health services
Burton H, Wright C, Zimmern R.
Genome Medicine. 2009 Oct; 12;1(10):93
Testing challenges: evaluation of novel diagnostics and molecular biomarkers
Clinical Medicine. 2009 Feb; 9(1): 68-73.
Genetic tests for common diseases: new insights, old concerns
Hogarth S, Liddell K, Ling T, Melzer D, Sanderson S, Zimmern R.
British Medical Journal. 2008 Mar; 15;336(7644):590-3
How can genetic tests be evaluated for clinical use? Experience of the UK Genetic Testing Network.
Kroese M, Zimmern R, Farndon P, Stewart F, Whittaker J.
Eur J Hum Genet. 2007;15:917-21.
Will genomics widen or help heal the schism between medicine and public health?
Bowen S, Burke W, Gwinn M, Khoury M, Zimmern R.
American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2007 Oct; 33(4):310-17
Defining purpose: a key step in genetic test evaluation
Genetics in Medicine. 2007; 9(10):675-681
HER2 status in breast cancer - an example of pharmacogenetic testing
Kroese M, Pinder S, Zimmern R.
Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. 2007 Jul; 100(7):326-9
The evaluation of genetic tests
Journal of Public Health. 2007 May 24; [Epub ahead of print]
A roadmap for developing an efficient and reliable human genome epidemiology
Gwinn M, Higgins J, Ioannidis J, Little J, Zimmern R.
Nature Genetics. 2006; 38(1):3-5
Bellagio Group , Burke W, Khoury M, Stewart A, Zimmern R.
Genetics In Medicine. 2006 Jul; 8(7):451-8
Public health genomics: origins and basic concepts
Stewart A, Zimmern R.
Italian Journal of Public Health. 2006; 3, 9-15.
Medical Education. 2005; 39(3):243-4
Pharmacogenetics: policy needs for personal prescribing
Detmer D, Ling T, Melzer D, Raven A, Zimmern R.
Journal of Health Services Research and Policy. 2005; 10(1):40-4
Emery J, Higgins J, Kroese M, Patch C, Sanderson S, Zimmern R.
Genetics in Medicine. 2005; 7(7):495-500
Genetic tests and their evaluation: Can we answer the key questions?
Genetics in Medicine. 2004; 6(6):475-80
The Human Tissue Bill and the Mental Capacity Bill
Liddell K, Menon D, Zimmern R.
British Medical Journal. 2004; 328(7455):1510-1
Ensuring the appropriate use of genetic tests
Burke W, Zimmern R.
Nature Reviews Genetics. 2004; 5(12):955-8
(Almost) three cheers for UK genetics White Paper
Stewart A, Zimmern R.
The Lancet. 2003; 362(9381):341-2
Regulatory options for pharmacogenetics
Detmer D, Ling T, Melzer D, Zimmern R.
Pharmacogenomics. 2003; 4(5):527-30
Pharmacogenetics and public policy: expert views in Europe and North America
Detmer D, Melzer D, Zimmern R.
Pharmacogenomics. 2003; 4(6):689-91
Melzer D, Zimmern R.
British Medical Journal. 2002;324(7342):863-4
Austin M, Zimmern R.
Genetics in Medicine. 2002;4(4):275-8
Polygenic susceptibility to breast cancer and implications for prevention
Antoniou A, Bobrow M, Easton D, Pharoah P, Ponder B, Zimmern R.
Nature. 2002;31(1):33-6
