Dstl’s life saving work awarded at The Sun Military Awards
Scientists from the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) are celebrating after winning at The Sun Military Awards for their breakthrough work in the treatment for sepsis.
Pictured: Dstl's Chief Executive Gary Aitkenhead, actress Joely Richardson, Dstl's Wendy Butcher, Helen Jones, journalist Mark Austin and Dstl's Dr Roman Lukaszewski. Picture credit: The Sun
The glamourous event held in London saw those from across the MOD, including The British Army, The Royal Navy and the RAF congratulated for their contribution to the Armed Forces.
Work carried out at Dstl by Immunology Fellow, Dr Roman Lukaszewski and his team won the Innovation category and accepted their trophy from actress Joely Richardson and journalist Mark Austin.
The new test, which can identify patients most likely to develop sepsis, was developed following more than a decade of work by Dstl and its partners, including the US Department of Defense. The test could one day be used on the frontline to save the lives of troops, and in hospitals in the UK and beyond.
Dr Lukaszewski said:
It was a really special night and a real honour for our work to be recognised in such a public way. We have been working on this project for more than a decade and it’s fantastic to be able to have a result which could one day save so many lives. It was also a privilege to be among so many truly inspirational members of our Armed Forces.
Dstl was also shortlisted in the innovation category for its role in the procurement of the Carbonite-2 demonstrator satellite, which is able to capture colour and full HD still imagery and full-motion video from space.
Among the famous guests included armed forces supporters, Gareth Southgate, Nick Knowles, Bear Grylls and Dame Kelly Holmes, all walking on the red carpet at the Banqueting House in London.
Dstl’s Chief Executive, Gary Aitkenhead, who attended the awards, said:
It was an absolutely fantastic evening – to be at a national event that holds real prominence for the military, and indeed our people, who support the Armed Forces. Winning the innovation award for the sepsis breakthrough is just brilliant, I’m really proud of the team.
The awards will be shown on Forces TV with a 90 minute programme on the following channels: Freeview 96, Freesat 165, Sky 450 or Virgin 277, on Wednesday 19th December.