January 25th, 2012
Bond author’s family give heart scientist licence to heal
The family of James
Bond creator, Ian Fleming, have donated over £120,000 to support
our ground-breaking research into Mending Broken Hearts. This generous donation
was raised through a series of events celebrating 100 years since
Ian Fleming’s birth.
Dr Nicola Smart, who works with BHF
Professor Paul Riley, can now continue her work looking at
ways to repair the heart after heart
attack until May 2013. In recognition of the Fleming family’s
support, Dr Smart will now be the ‘BHF Ian Fleming Intermediate
Research Fellow”.
My uncle, Ian Fleming, would have been fascinated by the discoveries Nicola has made
Lucy Fleming, Ian
Fleming’s niece who formally gave Dr Smart her award on behalf of
the family, said:
"We are very proud to support Dr Nicola Smart and her
ground-breaking research. My uncle, Ian Fleming, would have been
fascinated by the discoveries she has made and if such
extraordinary breakthroughs had been available during his lifetime,
he might have given us many more James Bond adventures."
Upon receiving the award Dr Nicola Smart said:
“Until recently, the idea that we could mend broken hearts was
considered science fiction and more likely to have been imagined by
an author like Ian Fleming. But this work is now becoming science
fact and thanks to the help of Ian’s family and the BHF we hope it
will become a clinical reality over the next decade.”