Professor Sir John Burn 

Professor of Clinical Genetics, Newcastle University Translational and Clinical Research Institute

Professor Sir John Burn MD FRCP FRCPE FRCPH FRCOG FMedSci

I am Chief Investigator on the CaPP3 Trial and of the Cancer Prevention Programme, which involves an international collaboration to test low cost therapeutic prevention strategies.  We have demonstrated the protective effects of aspirin in families with hereditary colorectal cancer, including Lynch syndrome. I co-lead a research programme exploring the mechanisms of the anti-cancer properties of aspirin.

Other current roles include being chair of The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, one of the largest multi-specialty healthcare organisations in Europe, executive Director of the charity Global Variome, recognised as a UNESCO associate non-governmental organisation, and Vice Chair of QuantuMDx ltd, a medical device company in the genomics field.

Langton DJ, Bourke SC, Lie BA, Reiff G, Natu S, Darlay R, Burn J, Echevarria C. The influence of HLA genotype on the severity of COVID-19 infection. HLA. 2021 Jul;98(1):14-22. doi: 10.1111/tan.14284. Epub 2021 May 4.

Gallon R, Kibbi N, Cook S, Santibanez-Koref M, Jackson MS, Burn J, Rajan N. Sebaceous tumours: a prototypical class of skin tumour for universal germline genetic testing. Br J Dermatol. 2021 May 29.

Gallon R, Gawthorpe P, Phelps RL, Hayes C, Borthwick GM, Santibanez-Koref M, Jackson MS, Burn J. How Should We Test for Lynch Syndrome? A Review of Current Guidelines and Future Strategies. Cancers (Basel). 2021 Jan 22;13(3):406.

Burn J, Sheth H, Elliott F, Reed L, Macrae F, Mecklin JP, Möslein G, McRonald FE, Bertario L, Evans DG, Gerdes AM, Ho JWC, Lindblom A, Morrison PJ, Rashbass J, Ramesar R, Seppälä T, Thomas HJW, Pylvänäinen K, Borthwick GM, Mathers JC, Bishop DT; CAPP2 Investigators. Cancer prevention with aspirin in hereditary colorectal cancer (Lynch syndrome), 10-year follow-up and registry-based 20-year data in the CAPP2 study: a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet. 2020 Jun 13;395(10240):1855-1863.

Gallon R, Sheth H, Hayes C, Redford L, Alhilal G, O’Brien O, Spiewak H, Waltham A, McAnulty C, Izuogu OG, Arends MJ, Oniscu A, Alonso AM, Laguna SM, Borthwick GM, Santibanez-Koref M, Jackson MS, Burn J. Sequencing-based microsatellite instability testing using as few as six markers for high-throughput clinical diagnostics. Hum Mutat. 2020 Jan;41(1):332-341.

Gallon R, Mühlegger B, Wenzel SS, Sheth H, Hayes C, Aretz S, Dahan K, Foulkes W, Kratz CP, Ripperger T, Azizi AA, Baris Feldman H, Chong AL, Demirsoy U, Florkin B, Imschweiler T, Januszkiewicz-Lewandowska D, Lobitz S, Nathrath M, Pander HJ, Perez-Alonso V, Perne C, Ragab I, Rosenbaum T, Rueda D, Seidel MG, Suerink M, Taeubner J, Zimmermann SY, Zschocke J, Borthwick GM, Burn J, Jackson MS, Santibanez-Koref M, Wimmer K. A sensitive and scalable microsatellite instability assay to diagnose constitutional mismatch repair deficiency by sequencing of peripheral blood leukocytes. Hum Mutat. 2019 May;40(5):649-655.

Burn J, Sheth H. The role of aspirin in preventing colorectal cancer. Br Med Bull. 2016 Sep;119(1):17-24.

Burn J, Watson M. The Human Variome Project. Hum Mutat. 2016 Jun;37(6):505-7.

Burn J, Mathers JC, Bishop DT. Chemoprevention in Lynch syndrome. Fam Cancer. 2013 Dec;12(4):707-18.

Burn J, Mathers J, Bishop DT. Lynch syndrome: history, causes, diagnosis, treatment and prevention (CAPP2 trial). Dig Dis. 2012;30 Suppl 2:39-47.

Burn J, Gerdes AM, Macrae F, Mecklin JP, Moeslein G, Olschwang S, Eccles D, Evans DG, Maher ER, Bertario L, Bisgaard ML, Dunlop MG, Ho JW, Hodgson SV, Lindblom A, Lubinski J, Morrison PJ, Murday V, Ramesar R, Side L, Scott RJ, Thomas HJ, Vasen HF, Barker G, Crawford G, Elliott F, Movahedi M, Pylvanainen K, Wijnen JT, Fodde R, Lynch HT, Mathers JC, Bishop DT; CAPP2 Investigators. Long-term effect of aspirin on cancer risk in carriers of hereditary colorectal cancer: an analysis from the CAPP2 randomised controlled trial. Lancet. 2011 Dec 17;378(9809):2081-7.