Research profile: Professor Andrew Bush

Professor Andrew Bush MD FRCP FRCPCH is Professor of Paediatric Respirology at the Royal Brompton Hospital and Imperial College, London.

Asthma UK is supporting his current research into therapy resistant asthma and invasive and non-invasive monitoring of airway inflammation.

Why is asthma so interesting as a research issue?

Asthma in childhood comprises many conditions, not one. This variety is an endless source of fascination. Studies on asthma have led to major insights into how the normal airway works, at many different levels: molecular, cellular, physiological. But interest is not the only thing; asthma is an important cause of childhood illness and needs to be tackled for that reason alone.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

The challenge of working with children. There are obvious ethical constraints which do not apply to adults, so we have to devise different ways of getting the information we need to help them. Children are always such fun; they keep doctors on their toes. Best of all is when a piece of work comes together and starts to make a real difference to individuals, as with the therapy resistant asthma project.

How does Asthma UK help your research?

We have received major grant funding, without which we would not have the personnel or the resources to carry out this work. There is no doubt that without Asthma UK funding, the projects could not be done.

What do you hope to achieve as a result of your research?

Firstly, we hope to put the treatment of severe, therapy resistant asthma on a rational basis, by bringing advances in basic science to the clinical management of children. Secondly, we hope to begin to understand some of the airway events early on in asthma, by studying infants and preschool children using the same protocols and techniques we have developed in older children. Thirdly, we aim to roll out this work to other centres in Europe, collaborating with colleagues overseas, sharing knowledge in order to facilitate the study of severe asthma, and understanding of what new treatments will benefit children.

How do you see the future?

There is a long way to go to understand why asthma starts, and how to tackle it before it becomes permanently established. There are no easy answers either. Studies will need to be carried out in very young children, which is a major challenge. There are also far too many children with severe asthma, for whom childhood is misery, not fun as it should be. The support of Asthma UK will be pivotal if we are to make progress in understanding and treating asthma.