Professor Aftab Ala

Professional statement

Professor Aftab Ala is an internationally recognised consultant gastroenterologist and hepatologist who specialises in liver disease, liver function tests, FibroScan, colonoscopy, gastroscopy and SIBO. His private practice is based at Mount Alvernia Hospital, Nuffield Health Guildford Hospital, Prime Health Surrey and Spire Clare Park Hospital, with NHS base at the Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust, Guildford and Institute of Liver Studies, King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London. 

FibroScan, one of Professor Ala's areas of expertise, is a non-invasive technique that allows the assessment of hepatic fibrosis, as well as quantification of liver fat. It's fast, reliable and is alternative to a biopsy, which takes longer than a FibroScan test and has potential complications.   

Professor Ala is highly qualified, with an MB BS from Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School (Imperial College, London) an MD (United States Medical Licensing Examination) and a PhD in hepatology from University College London, where he won a National Wellcome Trust Research Training fellowship in immune and inflammatory medicine mechanisms linking liver and gut disease. Following specialist training in global centres of excellence at King's and Royal Free Hospitals, he was awarded a Certificate of Completion of Specialist Training (CSST) in gastroenterology and internal medicine.

He undertook further focused training as advanced hepatology fellowship to Mount Sinai Hospital in New York from 2003 to 2004, building international expertise on rare liver diseases, chronic liver disease and liver/bowel transplantation. Professor Ala is a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, London the Chair of the Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Clinical and Experimental Medicine Department at the University of Surrey and a consultant hepatologist at Royal Surrey and Kings London.

He has written and contributed to over 200 peer-reviewed original medical articles and oral presentations. He has supervised PhD students at the University of Surrey and King's College London leading research programmes supported by National (NIHR and UKRI-MRC) and International funding in genetic metabolic liver disease and inequalities of health in which he has an active track record of scientific achievement and running international and national clinical trials, including first in human studies.

He is a member of numerous scientific committees in his field, and is the lead for hepatology at the National Institute of Health and Research (NIHR) for Kent, Surrey and Sussex (South East England). Professor Ala is also a previous group member for hepato-pancreatic biliary (HPB) NHS England's South East coast Clinical Reference Group, NICE Guidelines on Hepatitis B, Clinical Advisor to the NHS England and currently British Liver Trust-

Professor Ala is a member of various professional organisations including the Royal College of Physicians London, the British Society of Gastroenterology (BSG) British Association for the Study of the Liver (BASL). He is the lead of the Wilson's Disease and Rare Liver Disease Special Interest Group for BASL, member of the American Association for the Study of the Liver (AASLD) and the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL).