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Cambridge researchers win two separate awards at first ever NIHR Impact Prize ceremony

Group photos of the NIHR Impact Prize winners - 2025

Researchers from the University of Cambridge and Cambridge University Hospitals, received two separate awards in the first-ever NIHR Impact Prize Ceremony. The awards, which commemorate life-changing work, was held in Birmingham last night. 

21 March 2025

Dr Nurulamin (Nuru) Noor, one of the lead researchers on the PROFILE Trial, dedicated to advancing treatment and care for newly diagnosed Crohn’s patients, won an Early-career researcher award. The capsule sponge testing team, responsible for developing the ‘pill on a string’, driving forward early detection and prevention of oesephageal cancer, were given an Established investigator award. Professor Rebecca Fitzgerald collected the award on behalf of the team.

The aim of the awards, is to recognise major improvements in health over the last two decades, driven by research and scientific advances. The prizes are presented to researchers and teams who have had a major impact on the health and wealth of the nation and globally. They celebrate researchers who have maximised the impact of their research by improving people’s lives or promoting economic growth.

The winners were announced at a ceremony in Birmingham by Professor Lucy Chappell, the Chief Scientific Advisor at the Department of Health and Social Care and Chief Executive Officer of the NIHR.

A total of 136 entries were received by NIHR. Of the 10 winners, 5 awards went to research teams and 5 to early-career researchers.

Dr Nurulamin Noor receiving an NIHR Impact Award

Dr Nuru Noor – PROFILE Trial Team

Award: Early-career researcher

Dr Nuru Noor, one of the study leads at the University of Cambridge, was awarded one of the 5 early-career researcher awards for research to show how early drug treatment leads to better outcomes for people with Crohn’s disease.


Dr Nuru Noor said: “I’m delighted to pick up this award on behalf of the Profile Trial Team. This is a really important research study for patients living with Crohn’s disease, and supported by the NIHR and the wider gastroenterology and the inflammatory bowel disease community across the UK and indeed around the world.

Our findings have had a huge impact, and they’ve changed both national and international guidelines and established a new global standard of care for patients newly diagnosed with Crohn’s disease.”

Supported by NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre, this research found that offering early advanced therapy to all patients straight after diagnosis can significantly improve outcomes for people with Crohn’s disease. The study also showed it led to cost-savings on scans, colonoscopies and later surgery. This new treatment strategy has been implemented across the NHS and globally, improving lives and reducing the number of people who require abdominal surgery. 

Read more about this study.

The judging panel commented: “This research has not only had a huge impact for people newly-diagnosed with Crohn’s disease but has also led to significant cost savings”.

Dr Nurulamin Noor receiving an NIHR Impact Award
Professor Rebecca Fitzgerald receiving an NIHR Impact Prize Award

Capsule sponge testing team

Award: Established Investigator

The capsule sponge testing team at the University of Cambridge was awarded one of the 5 established investigator awards for research to improve the detection and prevention of oesophageal cancer by using a swallowable sponge on a string. Professor Rebecca Fitzgerald collected the award on behalf of the team.


She said: “It’s brilliant to be recognised because research takes a long time, and generating the evidence to go all the way from kind of proof of concept through to implementation takes a long time. There are ups and downs, but it’s really fantastic when there’s some recognition of the work.

And it’s an impact prize so it’s worth it for the long haul to start getting the impact and, in my case, it’s around earlier diagnosis for cancer oesophagus, which is one of those really horrible cancers. And so anything we can do to impact that problem and start getting early diagnosis is what it’s all about.”

The research team developed a ‘pill-on-a-string’ device which can reliably detect the precursor to oesophageal cancer, Barrett’s oesophagus. Used in clinics and GP surgeries, this device improves detection rates for people with Barrett’s oesophagus and in addition to earlier diagnosis, the device helps to save costs compared to traditional diagnosis. This study received NIHR funding and support from the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre, NIHR Cambridge Clinical Research Facility, NIHR Clinical Research Network East of England (now the NIHR East of England Regional Research Delivery Network ) and NIHR Health Technology Assessment programme. 

Read more about the study.

The judging panel commented: “A leading example of impactful innovation.”

Professor Rebecca Fitzgerald receiving an NIHR Impact Award with Professor Lucy Chappell

All winners demonstrate an incredible dedication to maximising the impact of their research, and illustrate how NIHR research saves lives and improves the quality of life of the public.

Find out more about the NIHR Impact Prizes.

The NIHR Cambridge BRC is part of the NIHR and hosted by Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in partnership with the University of Cambridge. We are at the heart of the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Europe’s largest health research area.

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