Cardiovascular disease, which includes all forms of heart disease and stroke, is the main cause of death in the UK and accounts for almost half of all deaths in the UK, no less for women than men.  Although death rates are falling, the number of people living with heart disease is increasing. Leading UK expert, Professor Gianni Angelini, will be speaking about the latest research and treatment, at a free public lecture hosted by Bristol University next week.

The most common form of cardiovascular disease is coronary heart disease, which remains the UK’s single biggest killer of both men and women, taking over 100,000 lives each year. Currently about 2.5 million people suffer from coronary heart disease, which results from ‘furring up’ of the arteries that supply the heart with blood.

These alarming statistics highlight the need to understand the factors that cause heart disease, improve existing treatments and find new ways of treating the disease so we can confine it to history in the twenty-first century.

The talk, Trust me; I’m a cardiac surgeon, will be given by Gianni Angelini, Professor of Cardiac Surgery at Bristol University and Director of the Bristol Heart Institute.  He will discuss the latest research in gene technology, innovative cardiac surgery and the impact of exercise and diet on cardiovascular health. He will also emphasis the scale of expertise in the Bristol Heart Institute and its advancement into an internationally recognised centre of excellence.

Professor Gianni Angelini, said: “The talk is a celebration of cardiovascular research in Bristol. The research we do has a global impact on today’s society and we hope to increase the public understanding and appreciation of the importance of such work. Only through continued research will we understand more about this debilitating disease.”

The free public lecture will take place at the Victoria Rooms, Queen’s Road, Clifton, on Wednesday, 12 July at 6 pm, drinks from 7 to 8 pm.