Professor Charlotte Summers

Prof Charlotte Summers

Director of the Victor Phillip Dahdaleh Heart & Lung Research Institute and Professor of Intensive Care Medicine, University of Cambridge

Email: cs493@cam.ac.uk

EA: Sarah Chantler - sc282@cam.ac.uk

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/prof-charlotte-summers

Biography

Charlotte graduated in both Biomedical Sciences and Medicine from the University of Southampton, and later undertook a PhD at the University of Cambridge, investigating the role of inflammation on the pulmonary transit kinetics of human neutrophils, alongside specialist clinical training in Respiratory (East of England) and Intensive Care Medicine (London).  She was the UK’s first NIHR Clinical Lecturer in Intensive Care Medicine and subsequently received a Fulbright All-disciplines Scholar Award and a Wellcome Trust Fellowship for Postdoctoral Clinician Scientists.  Charlotte joined the University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine in 2015 from the University of California, San Francisco. 

Transforming care through science, policy, and partnership

Professor Charlotte Summers is an internationally recognised clinician-scientist whose work focuses on improving outcomes for patients with acute and critical illness, particularly respiratory failure and lung injury. Her work is dedicated to advancing the science and practice of acute care by uniting discovery research, clinical trials, and policy leadership. Through cross-sector collaboration and a strong commitment to mentoring the next generation of clinician-scientists, she aims to translate breakthroughs into better treatments and outcomes for patients worldwide.

She is Chief Investigator of HEAL-COVID, the largest NIHR-funded clinical trial in post-COVID care, and co-investigator on international collaborations such as GenOMICC. She also leads experimental medicine programmes supported by NIHR, MRC, and industry partners, aimed at accelerating the discovery of new treatments for critical illness.

Alongside her research, Professor Summers provides national leadership as NIHR National Specialty Lead for Critical Care and Chair of the UKRI-MRC Experimental Medicine Panel. She has contributed expert advice to the UK Government during the COVID-19 pandemic, co-authored major NIHR and Academy of Medical Sciences reports, and continues to shape policy on pandemic preparedness, oxygen security, and critical care delivery.

Her work exemplifies cross-sector collaboration, combining academic excellence, NHS service, and global partnerships to deliver research that directly improves patient outcomes. Prospective research students and collaborators are welcome to get in touch to explore opportunities within her group and the wider VPD-HLRI community.

Current projects

• Elucidating the host defence mechanisms via which the pulmonary microcirculation prevents innate immune cell-mediated damage, and developing an understanding of how those mechanisms fail in acute hypoxaemic respiratory failure.
• Investigating the influence of the pulmonary microenvironment on neutrophil phenotype and function.
• Determining the cellular mechanisms of acute pulmonary inflammation to help identify novel targets for therapeutic intervention.
• Chief Investigator of HEAL-COVID, a phase III platform clinical trial " seeking to identify therapies to improve the longer-term outcomes of people hospitalised with COVID-19.
• Observational studies in high, middle and low-income areas to understand the impact of acute hypoxemic respiratory failure on patients and healthcare systems.

Selected Publications

1. The epidemiology and clinical outcomes of adults with acute respiratory failure in a low-income country in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: A prospective, observational, multicentre cohort study. Kwizera A, Kabatooro D, Sendagire C, Nakibuuka J, Owachi D, Nsereko C, Ochieng J_P, Goretti Nampiina M, Nampaawu MJ, Kakaire D, Baluku M, Odwar E, Kateregga G, Dunser M, Olaro C, Kyobe-Bosa H, Kirenga BJ, Kakiyingi L, Byakiika-Kibwika P, Kiwanuka N, Kateete DP, Joloba M, Summers C. BMJ Global Health, 2025; 10:e017949
2. A randomised trial of anti-GM-CSF otilimab in severe COVID-19 pneumonia (OSCAR).  Patel J, Bass D, Beishuizen A, Bocca Ruiz X, Boughanmi H, Cahn A, Colombo H, Criner GJ, Davy K, de-Miguel-Díez J, Doreski PA, Fernandes S, François B, Gupta A, Hanrott K, Hatlen T, Inman D, Isaacs JD, Jarvis E, Kostina N, Kropotina T, Lacherade JC, Lakshminarayanan D, Martinez-Ayala P, McEvoy C, Meziani F, Monchi M, Mukherjee S, Muñoz-Bermúdez R, Neisen J, O'Shea C, Plantefeve G, Schifano L, Schwab LE, Shahid Z, Shirano M, Smith JE, Sprinz E, Summers C, Terzi N, Tidswell MA, Trefilova Y, Williamson R, Wyncoll D, Layton M.Eur Respir J. 2023; 61:2101870. 
3. Whole-genome sequencing reveals host factors underlying critical COVID-19. Kousathanas A, Pairo-Castineira E, Rawlik K, Stuckey A, Odhams CA, Walker S, Russell CD, Malinauskas T, Wu Y, Millar J, Shen X, Elliott KS, Griffiths F, Oosthuyzen W, Morrice K, Keating S, Wang B, Rhodes D, Klaric L, Zechner M, Parkinson N, Siddiq A, Goddard P, Donovan S, Maslove D, Nichol A, Semple MG, Zainy T, Maleady-Crowe F, Todd L, Salehi S, Knight J, Elgar G, Chan G, Arumugam P, Patch C, Rendon A, Bentley D, Kingsley C, Kosmicki JA, Horowitz JE, Baras A, Abecasis GR, Ferreira MAR, Justice A, Mirshahi T, Oetjens M, Rader DJ, Ritchie MD, Verma A, Fowler TA, Shankar-Hari M, Summers C, Hinds C, Horby P, Ling L, McAuley D, Montgomery H, Openshaw PJM, Elliott P, Walsh T, Tenesa A; GenOMICC investigators; 23andMe investigators; COVID-19 Human Genetics Initiative; Fawkes A, Murphy L, Rowan K, Ponting CP, Vitart V, Wilson JF, Yang J, Bretherick AD, Scott RH, Hendry SC, Moutsianas L, Law A, Caulfield MJ, Baillie JK. Nature. 2022; 607:97-103. 
4. Pulmonary retention of primed neutrophils: a novel protective host response, which is impaired in the acute respiratory distress syndrome. Summers C, Singh NR, White JF, Mackenzie IM, Johnston A, Solanki C, Balan KK, Peters AM, Chilvers ER. Thorax. 2014; 69:623-9. 
5. Novel anti-tumour necrosis factor receptor-1 (TNFR1) domain antibody prevents pulmonary inflammation in experimental acute lung injury. Proudfoot A, Bayliffe A, O'Kane CM, Wright T, Serone A, Bareille PJ, Brown V, Hamid UI, Chen Y, Wilson R, Cordy J, Morley P, de Wildt R, Elborn S, Hind M, Chilvers ER, Griffiths M, Summers C, McAuley DF. Thorax. 2018; 73:723-730.

Research collaborations

HEAL-COVID: www.heal-covid.net

ISARIC 4C: https://isaric4c.net

GenOMICC: https://genomicc.org