Richard SullivanAcademic

Biography

Richard Sullivan is Professor of Cancer and Global Health at King's College London, Director of the Institute of Cancer Policy (ICP), and co-Director of the Conflict and Health Research Group. He qualified in medicine and trained in surgery (urology), gaining his PhD in Biochemistry from University College London, before serving as Clinical Director of Cancer Research UK between 1999 and 2008. Following a period at the London School of Economics working on complex healthcare systems, he moved to King's College London in 2011. He is Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Cancer Policy and serves as an NCD advisor to the WHO. He is widely cited in UK health policy debates, having argued in the BMJ that scrapping England's dedicated national cancer plan is 'a catastrophic decision that will cost lives', and in The Lancet Oncology that the UK cancer care system is at a critical breaking point requiring radical action.

References

1. 1.Richard Sullivan | King's College London — Current role, title, research focus, career history at KCL; WHO NCD advisor role
2. 2.Professor Richard Sullivan – Cambridge CSAP Network — Career history including Cancer Research UK clinical directorship (1999–2008), LSE period, move to KCL 2011, Lancet commission work
3. 3.Richard Sullivan – European Cancer Organisation — Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Cancer Policy; current Lancet commission memberships; PhD from UCL; biosecurity work
4. 4.Scrapping England's cancer plan is 'a catastrophic decision that will cost lives' – BMJ Group — Sullivan's public health policy advocacy in the BMJ on England's national cancer plan (2023)
5. 5.UK cancer care system at critical breaking point, experts warn | King's College London

Expertise

Cited on

• Hospital discharge / bed-blocking

Stated areas of expertise

• Cancer policy and planning
• Global cancer systems strengthening
• NHS cancer workforce and waiting times
• Conflict and health
• Cancer inequalities
• Global radiotherapy access

Notable achievements

• Co-authored a BMJ article (2023) warning that scrapping England's long-term cancer plan was 'a catastrophic decision that will cost lives', prompting significant national policy debate. Source ↗
• Joint senior author of a Lancet Oncology policy review (2023) setting out ten time-critical cancer care challenges for the NHS and calling for a comprehensive national cancer control plan. Source ↗
• Co-authored a Lancet Oncology commentary (April 2025) calling for an independent National Cancer Director, warning the UK cancer care system is at a critical breaking point. Source ↗
• Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Cancer Policy and contributor to multiple Lancet and Lancet Oncology commissions, including the Lancet Commission on Global Diagnostics. Source ↗
• Served as Clinical Director of Cancer Research UK between 1999 and 2008, one of the world's largest cancer research NGOs. Source ↗

What they’ve said

• “China, once seen as a follower, is now emerging as a global leader in cutting-edge biopharmaceutical treatments, reshaping the competitive landscape.”

  Professor of cancer and global health at King's College London · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · The Guardian view on Merck’s exit: Britain’s biopharma strategy stalls in the face of China’s rise | Editorial ↗

• “"You've got this dual problem of the airspace and the knock-on problems around logistic chains. When you look at the supply chains, for most of the cancer drugs they're very thin, they often rely on just one supplier."”

  professor of cancer and global health at King's College London and director of the Institute of Cancer Policy · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · From syringes to stents: Iran war exposes NHS dependency on petrochemicals ↗

Source references

1. The Guardian view on Merck’s exit: Britain’s biopharma strategy stalls in the face of China’s rise | Editorialtheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
2. From syringes to stents: Iran war exposes NHS dependency on petrochemicalstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026

Contact & links

• Staff pagehttps://www.kcl.ac.uk/people/richard-sullivan
• Websitehttps://instituteofcancerpolicy.org/who-we-are/richard-sullivan

Organisational contact points only, each taken from a page the organisation publishes itself. No personal or direct contact details are held or shown.