New fellowship awarded to honour late expert in eye cancer
Guy Negretti | GR001454
25 January 2022
To honour the late Victoria Cohen, an expert in ocular oncology, we’re awarding a fellowship to Moorfields consultant, Guy Negretti, who will spend six months in the US researching and learning about eye cancer to further enhance patient care at the hospital.
In Memoriam – Victoria Cohen
Victoria was a much loved and internationally respected consultant at Moorfields Eye Hospital, specialising in ocular oncology, who sadly passed away in December 2020. A world expert in her field, Victoria was passionate about the delivery of excellent patient care and the advancement of women in medicine. She trained surgeons from all over the world in her specialty, helping to improve the standard of treatment for people with eye cancer.
Victoria’s contributions to ocular oncology are recognised across the globe, and the work she did led to her serving key roles within the field, including as the director of the National Oncology Service in London, chair of the Ocular Oncology Multidisciplinary Team and co-founder of Young Ocular Oncologists. In December 2020, she was also the serving president of the International Society of Ocular Oncology.
Moorfields Eye Charity Victoria Cohen Fellowship
Moorfields Eye Charity has awarded the fellowship as one of the ways in which Moorfields is honouring the life and legacy of Victoria. We are doing so in association with the Victoria Cohen Eye Cancer Charitable Trust.
We are honoured to award this fellowship as our way of marking the life and legacy of Victoria, one of the foremost ocular oncologists. It is very fitting that the fellowship will enable someone to follow in her footsteps and so join the team of Moorfields clinicians who provide world class care for patients with eye cancer.
Robert Dufton, chief executive, Moorfields Eye Charity
The recipient
Guy Negretti, consultant ophthalmologist at Moorfields, will be spending six months at the Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia, US, and visiting several other major ocular oncology centres during his time there, including Memorial Sloane Kettering, New York; MD Anderson, Houston; Beyer Eye Institute, Stanford and the Children’s Eye Hospital of Los Angeles, LA.
The ocular oncology service at Wills is the largest in the US, seeing over half of all cases in the country. It is the ideal place for Guy to gain an international perspective on the clinical management of eye cancer patients.
Receiving the Moorfields Eye Charity Victoria Cohen Fellowship is a particular honour, as Victoria was a great mentor to me.
This fresh perspective will allow me to bring new knowledge and skills back to Moorfields to further establish innovative methods in the care of our patients, enhance their care through research and improve the teaching of other doctors and health professionals.
Guy Negretti
The Victoria Cohen Eye Cancer Charitable Trust
In memory of Victoria, her husband, Nick Rapley, has set up the Victoria Cohen Eye Cancer Charitable Trust (VCECCT), which will provide scholarships to those who need financial assistance with their training and education in ocular oncology.
The VCECCT fellowship is open to aspiring ocular oncologists worldwide and is awarded annually to the most deserving applicant, as determined by the charity’s expert judging panel of leading ocular oncologists. Applications for this year close on 31 March 2022.
I am delighted that Moorfields has established the Moorfields Eye Charity Victoria Cohen Fellowship and awarded this to Guy Negretti. I know that Victoria would be very proud to have a fellowship named after her and would be thrilled for Guy.
Moorfields Eye Charity and the Victoria Cohen Eye Cancer Charitable Trust both recognise the importance of investing in the training and education of aspiring ocular oncologists. The VCECCT exists to support those with the ambition but not the means and is open to applicants from anywhere in the world.
Nick Rapley, chair, Victoria Cohen Eye Cancer Charitable Trust
