In this episode we meet Professor Sejal Saglani, who is investigating whether farm yard dust can stop kids getting asthma. You’ll also meet Dr John Blaikley whose research is investigating whether there’s a link between sleep patterns and pulmonary fibrosis. Help us fund more cutting edge research to bring hope to the millions living with lung conditions in the UK: asthma.org.uk/hopemachine

Discover our research into farm dust and sleep patterns

In this episode we meet Dr Katherine Fawcett, who is looking into the fascinating world of asthma genetics and what impact DNA can have on the condition. You’ll also meet Dr Aaron Scott whose researching the impact of E-Cigarettes on lung conditions like COPD. Help us fund more cutting edge research to bring hope to the millions living with lung conditions in the UK: asthma.org.uk/hopemachine

Is developing asthma in our DNA?

It wasn’t too long ago that none of us had even heard of a ‘lateral flow test’ – never mind taken one. In today’s episode, Professor Richard Body tells us about the amazing UK response to develop new tests for COVID-19 – and how his work to ‘test the tests’ is helping diagnose conditions like COVID more quickly and more accurately.

We’ll also meet Professor Louise Wain, a geneticist looking at whether tiny differences in our DNA sequences could make us more, or less, likely to develop lung conditions like COPD and pulmonary fibrosis.

Help us fund more cutting edge research to bring hope to the millions living with lung conditions in the UK: asthma.org.uk/hopemachine

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How did we develop accurate tests for COVID-19?

A special episode featuring doctor, academic, writer, and broadcaster Ben Goldacre. The author of Bad Pharma, Bad Science and other titles, Ben’s books have sold over 600,000 copies – and his TED talks have had over 4 million views.

Ben now runs the Data Lab at Oxford University, working with a multi-disciplinary team of academics, healthcare providers and software developers. Last year, just as the COVID-19 pandemic hit, your donations helped us support the Open Safely project that Ben and his colleagues pulled together amazingly rapidly. It’s been hugely influential in transforming the way health records are analysed by researchers – and had immediate impact in helping the UK government make decisions about how to respond to the pandemic.

As well as getting to know Ben a little better, we’ll also be asking him to take on our 60 second challenge. Can he explain the world of health data analysis in language so simple a nine year old can understand it? We’ll find out…

Help us fund more cutting edge research to bring hope to the millions living with lung conditions in the UK: asthma.org.uk/hopemachine

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ben Goldacre: How looking at data in OpenSAFELY is helping fight COVID

Help us fund more cutting edge research to bring hope to the millions living with lung conditions in the UK: asthma.org.uk/hopemachine

Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation Partnership