Congratulations to the 2021 R T Hall Prize Winners: Professor Peter Thompson and Professor Mark Nidorf 

Professors Thompson and Nidorf have made a significant contribution to cardiovascular medicine in their pursuit of the role of colchicine in preventing coronary events.

In the last 14 years Nidorf and Thompson’s work has propelled the idea of treating atherosclerotic inflammation with colchicine from the bedside into the international spotlight. Not only has it helped to “close the loop” on the inflammatory hypothesis of atherosclerosis, but colchicine’s potential as a cornerstone therapy for secondary prevention coronary disease with an inexpensive readily available drug with an impressive safety profile, is now seriously considered. Work continues to determine if early intolerance to colchicine can be reduced by differing dosing regimens and how best to monitor anti-inflammatory effect in atherosclerosis. The evidence from trials completed to date suggest that repurposing colchicine for secondary prevention of CV disease has the potential to change practice and have a global impact on CV disease.