Biography

Professor Forrester received his MD, ChB from Glasgow University, Scotland in 1970.  In 1980 he received his MD also from the University of Glasgow.  Between 1979-1984 he was Consultant Ophthalmologist/Clinical Lecturer in Ophthalmology at Glasgow University.  In 1984 he was appointed to his current post, Cockburn Professor of Ophthalmology University of Aberdeen/Honorary Consultant Ophthalmologist, NHS Grampian.

He has over the years received 16 awards and Visiting Professorships including the London Hospital Prize for Original Research in Ophthalmology in 1977, the Duke Elder Medal and the Ida Mann Medal in 1991.  He received the Spinoza Professorship in Amsterdam in 1998 and the Kimura Lectureship as Visiting Professor (UCSF) University of California, San Francisco in 2004.

His main areas of research are Diabetic Retinopathy, Angiogenesis, Endothelial Cell Function, Ocular Immunology, Uveitis, Autoimmune Disease, Imaging in Ophthalmology, Wound Healing and Corneal Transplantation and has published over 260 papers.

He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and Glasgow, Royal College of Ophthalmologists, Physicians of Edinburgh, Academy of Medical Sciences and the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

He was Chairman of the RCOphth Medical Ophthalmology Training Sub-Committee and the RCOphth Diabetic Retinopathy Guidelines Committee and a member of the MRC Advisory Board.  He was previously Editor-in-Chief of the British Journal of Ophthalmology 1992-2000.  He is currently an Editorial Board member of the British Journal of Ophthalmology, European Journal of Ophthalmology and Current Eye Research.