Dame Suzannah Lishman is a distinguished histopathologist and healthcare leader, widely recognised for her contributions to pathology, patient safety, and public engagement. She served as President of the Royal College of Pathologists from 2014 to 2017, becoming the organisation’s second female president.
After qualifying in medicine and specialising in histopathology, she was appointed a consultant in 1999. From 2005 onwards, she held a number of senior officer roles at the Royal College of Pathologists, where she significantly raised the public profile of the specialty. Her initiatives included the creation of National Pathology Week and International Pathology Day, alongside collaborations with organisations such as the Science Museum, the Royal Institution, the Royal Society, and the Cheltenham Science Festival.
In addition to her presidency of the Royal College of Pathologists, Dame Suzannah was elected President of the Association of Clinical Pathologists in 2022 and was appointed Chair of the National Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Death (NCEPOD) in 2024.
She currently works as a consultant cellular pathologist and medical examiner at Peterborough City Hospital, where she is also the lead pathologist for colorectal cancer.
Dame Suzannah has been widely recognised for her leadership and advocacy. In 2013, she was named one of the Health Service Journal’s fifty most inspirational women in healthcare, which described her as the “public face of pathology” and “the most outward-facing person from that specialism.” She was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2018 New Year Honours for services to pathology, and later promoted to Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) for services to the medical examiner system and to patient safety.