Get to know Lihadh Al Ghazali, Professor and senior consultant in Clinical Genetics and Paediatrics at UAE University, Al Ain.
Parents of children born with genetic disorders would look at me with searching eyes and ask in voices filled with anguish, "Why?" I knew that I had to look for scientific answers.
I enjoy working with children, which is why I chose paediatrics as my field of study at the University of Iraq in Baghdad.
During my training, I came across many children born with genetic disorders and abnormalities. But genetics was still a mystery at the time. There were no departments or facilities at hospitals, nor was there much patient care available. We had no answers or solutions to offer aggrieved parents. That's when I decided to take genetics as my area of specialisation.
Moving to the UK
Together with my husband, Dr Wessam Shather, and my one-year-old child, I moved to the UK in 1976 to train in paediatrics and sub-specialise in clinical genetics.
I continued my education at Leeds and Edinburgh, but faced hurdles because no structured courses were available yet. We'd get many cases from neighbouring Bradford, where the ratio of consanguineous [shared lineage] marriages was high, and therefore the number of children born with recessive genetic disorders was high.
Life was good, but we were lonely. I missed the sense of belonging and the warm feeling of being surrounded
by relatives and cousins. That's why we welcomed the opportunity to relocate to the UAE. Here we feel closer to our own culture, our values... and my children speak some Arabic now!
My husband is my proverbial pillar of strength. He was three years ahead of me in college. I couldn't have continued with my education and my work without his support and understanding. Also, going through crises and challenges together when we were young has strengthened our marriage and brought us closer. Being in the same profession has helped, too.
Back to the Middle East
It was my training in UK, where I lived and practiced for 14 years, that prepared me for the battleground I was to encounter next – in Al Ain. When we moved in 1990, it was only for a four-year contract with the Department of Paediatrics. At the time, the UAE was in the early stages of development; understandably, patient-service or research in genetics had lagged behind.
Moreover, there was practically no awareness about genetic disorders, so I had to build everything from scratch.
I held lectures, seminars and made television appearances to educate the public. Gradually people developed a better understanding and centres opened in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
According to a survey by March of Dimes statistics, the UAE ranks sixth out of 193 countries in the prevalence of birth defects – mainly due to genetic causes. Before I retire, I hope to see a full-fledged centre here dedicated to all areas related to genetics – education, research and patient service. After that, I want to go back to my hometown in Iraq to help children of my beautiful, strife-torn country.
Growing years
My childhood was warm, cosy and disciplined. My father was a judge in the army in Baghdad, and my mother was an educationalist. She was ahead of her contemporaries in her beliefs, worldview and achievements.
She went to Germany for higher education at a time when women didn't aspire to learn much beyond middle school. Education was of utmost importance. Mother always said that with hard work and perseverance you can achieve anything you want.
It's a teaching I passed on to my two daughters and son, who are now all successful in their own right.
My siblings and I could be nothing but top students in our class. My brother, one of my sisters and I went
on to study medicine. The other sister we managed to scare away… Too many doctors in the family for one, and
also because the rewards in this line are seldom commensurate with the enormous sacrifices and the years of hard work one needs to put in.
Perhaps this is why there is a general decline in the number of students opting for hard sciences worldwide. Secondly, so many interesting and viable career options are available now. Back in our day, if you were clever and intelligent, all that you hoped to be was a doctor or an engineer, which is what my other sister became eventually!
A man's world
Research is traditionally a male-dominated area. Women still remain under-represented. I personally found no difference between my culture and Western culture while working as a woman in science.
The higher you look in the scientific hierarchy, the lower the percentage of women. Women often underestimate their own performance and ability to pursue studies in technical sciences. And one big hurdle for women is the challenge of combining raising a family with a professional career.
Multi-faceted
I am a scientist by profession and an artist at heart even though I never found the time or opportunity to develop my artistic instincts. I enjoy music in a way that defies description! It touches the very core of my being. I am also intensely drawn to nature.
Very often, I drive out to the desert with my husband and immerse myself in the grandeur of the setting sun and the tranquillity of the vast expanses of orange sand!
Winning the L'Oreal–Unesco award
I was very happy to receive the L'Oréal-Unesco award for Africa and Arab States for my contribution to the characterisation of inherited disorders. Meeting French President Nicolas Sarkozy was an honour and a privilege. Being recognised for your work is always gratifying, and also because such public recognition provides the next generation of students with an added incentive.
And yet, I almost didn't go to receive the award at the President's Elysée Palace. One of my children's birthdays was coming up, and I was reluctant to miss it! Awards or no awards, I guess my happiest moments are still those when my children would get good grades in school, and more recently when my grandson Zayn was born!
Even amidst the hustle and bustle of shaking hands with the who's-who of the scientific circles from the world over, the woman in me didn't forget to notice and enjoy the ambience,
the fine cutlery and the lush décor at the palace!
Milestones
Professor Lihadh Al-Ghazali is a pioneer of genetics research in the Arab region. She has defined several new syndromes and contributed to the clinical and molecular characterisation of many disorders and syndromes in the UAE.
Through international collaboration, she and her group have identified 15 recessive genes and mapped seven genes. She has provided important data on the clinical appearance and natural history of many genetic syndromes.
She established a registry for monitoring birth defects in the UAE, the first registry of an Arab country to gain membership in the International Clearinghouse of Birth Defects based in Rome. She established a Clinical Genetics Service supported by cytogenetic and DNA laboratories which covers the entire UAE population, offering counselling, education and support for families affected by genetic diseases.
She played a key role in founding the Centre for Arab Genomic Studies in Dubai and establishing other regional genetics-related institutions.
She received the Distinguished Performance Award in Research and Clinical Services of UAE University in 2003 and was profiled in UK Medical Journal The Lancet in 2006 for her contribution to Clinical Genetics and Research in the Middle East.
