Frances Rotblat

Frances Rotblat was a British haematologist and scientist whose work contributed to major advances in the understanding and treatment of haemophilia. She is known for her research on blood coagulation and for developing techniques, including the use of monoclonal antibodies, to purify clotting factor VIII.

Her work on the purification and characterisation of factor VIII formed part of the scientific developments that enabled the sequencing of the factor VIII gene and the subsequent production of recombinant clotting factors. In this context, she has been described in tributes as a pioneering figure in the early development of biotechnology applied to haemophilia treatment.

Rotblat later worked in regulatory science at the Medicines Control Agency, contributing to the oversight of medicines in the United Kingdom.

Life Frances Rotblat was born in London in 1946 to Mania and Michael Rotblat, Jewish refugees who had escaped the Warsaw Ghetto. Joseph Rotblat, a nuclear physicist and disarmament campaigner, was her uncle.

Rotblat attended the South Hampstead High School, and graduated from St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College in physiology, medicine and surgery. She later obtained fellowships in pharmacology and haematology.

Following the successful development of recombinant factor VIII in the mid-1980s, this exchange has been cited as reflecting concerns about recognition and career progression in the scientific community. When funding for her work on haemophilia was stopped, Rotblat joined the UK Medicines Control Authority, vetting blood medications and vaccines before approval, where she remained till retirement. and she informed the inquiry that the theoretical risk of contamination was determined to be outweighed by the benefits of vaccination, and therefore the material was permitted to be used.

Involvement in UK blood product safety

Rotblat’s work intersected with issues later central to the UK infected blood scandal through her research and regulatory roles in haemophilia and blood product safety. Prior to joining the Medicines Control Agency, she conducted research on haemophilia and clotting factor concentrates. Evidence submitted to the Infected Blood Inquiry indicates that she was involved in professional correspondence concerning blood safety testing, including discussions on alanine aminotransferase (ALT) testing of blood donations in the late 1980s. While she was not identified as a central decision-maker, these records place her among clinicians and regulators engaged with the safety and testing of blood products during the period in which contaminated factor concentrates led to widespread infections.

Selected publications