Dr Oscar Wilkins has received the inaugural Rob Burrow Early Career Researcher Prize for his work on motor neurone disease treatments.
The annual award, launched by the MND Association in honour of its late patron and rugby league legend Rob Burrow CBE, recognises outstanding UK-based researchers early in their academic careers.
Dr Wilkins received the prize at the UCL/MND Research Institute Symposium in London on Friday 5 September, presented by the MND Association’s chief scientist Dr Brian Dickie.
Rob Burrow, diagnosed with MND in 2019, became a tireless advocate for awareness, public campaigning and research investment, before his death in June 2024 aged 41.
Dr Wilkins, motivated to study MND after losing a family member to the disease, focuses on treatments that can extend and improve the lives of people with neurodegenerative conditions.
Dr Wilkins said: “I am truly honoured to receive this prize, part of Rob Burrow’s legacy – someone who, together with his family and friends, has raised so much awareness of MND and highlighted how devastating the condition is.
“The dedication and courage of Rob Burrow, his family, and his extraordinary friend Kevin Sinfield are deeply inspiring to me as an MND researcher.
“Until very recently, clinical trials for MND were frequently based on limited information.
“However, MND treatments being developed today are underpinned by genetic-level knowledge of the disease – that’s really exciting. We’ve seen from other motor neurone degenerative conditions that when we build therapies based on this kind of deeper understanding, they can be incredibly effective.”
The prize includes a commemorative medal, £10,000 funding and a travel bursary to attend the MND Association’s International Symposium on ALS/MND in San Diego in December – the world’s largest annual conference dedicated to ALS and MND research.
Dr Dickie said: “The research Dr Wilkins is involved in, if successful, could have a huge impact on people with MND in the future.
“We are forever grateful to Rob for helping to make more people aware of how devastating this disease is.
“This award is in recognition of Rob’s drive to find effective treatments for MND and his determination to accelerate research so no one else would have to face the same diagnosis.
“It’s thanks to Rob and the efforts of so many others that so much new research can be funded – which could pave the way for a very different outlook for people with MND in years to come.”
MND, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), causes the progressive loss of the nerve cells that control movement, affecting speech, swallowing and breathing.
Research is increasingly focused on the genetic causes of the disease to develop targeted therapies, moving beyond earlier approaches based on limited information.
Rob’s father Geoff Burrow said: “I am so proud to see Rob’s legacy helping to support such ground-breaking work, and this is just the first of many research funding opportunities.
“I would love to think the work we will support will make crucial progress in our fight against MND.”
