Skip to content

History

The Platelet Society has been formed through the coming together of
The UK Platelet Group and The Platelet Charity.

A brief history of each organisation can be found below:

UK Platelet Group
The UK Platelet Group was an informal alliance of scientific research groups in the UK who shared a focus on platelet-related diseases. The The first meeting of the UK Platelet Group was held in Oxford in 1998 and attracted over 70 people. Since then , the meetings have grown in size with ever increasing numbers from the UK and overseas. The meetings were held annually across the UK until 2012 when it moved to a two year cycle. 

The main features of the UK Platelet meetings was its focus on supporting early career researchers, including students, its inexpensive registration and other costs, to encourage wide participation. 

The meetings have been generously supported by industrial sponsors, the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and the British Society for Haemostasis and Thrombosis (BSHT). 

The UK Platelet Summer School established in 2001 by the BSHT through the proceeds of the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostatis (ISTH). It is aimed at PhD students and postdoctoral fellows who are new to the field. The aim is to give an overview of all aspects of platelet research, from basic to the clinic. The meetings have included meet-the-expert sessions and small group discussions of how to write a grant etc. The number of participants ranges from 40 – 60. The meetings have been held at approximately 3 year intervals, again with generous support from BHF, BSHT and industrial sponsors.. The first four were organised by Prof Steve Watson (University of Birmingham)and the last by Prof Jon Gibbins (University of Reading). The summer schools are a fantastic way to build a cohort and to train the next generation of platelet researchers and emphasis the UK Platelet Group’s commitment to supporting early career researchers. . 

UK Platelet Charity (Registered Charity : 1151168)
The remit of the Platelet Charity (original name Funny Blood) was to increase awareness of platelet function disorders (and not just bleeding). It did this by running a web-site and other social media channels, producing fact sheets, funding small pump-priming grants and organising fund-raising events in the Wiltshire/Hampshire/Worcestershire area. The Charity was in existence between 2013-2017. The charity reformed as The Platelet Society in 2017 following the merger with the UK Platelet Group. This brings together everyone from patients to clinicians to scientists, to fully support all research and education in platelet-related diseases. 

Previous Meetings of the UK Platelet Group

YearGroupLocationOrganiser
2024Platelet Society Annual MeetingAberdeenDr Steve Thomas
Professor Nikki Mutch
Dr Claire Whyte
Dr Sam Montague
Dr Jo Mitchell
2023Joint Platelet Society and EuPLAN meetingBristolProfessor Alastair Poole
Professor Ingeborg Hers
Professor Stuart Mundell
Professor Andrew Mumford
Dr Elizabeth Aitken

ECR meeting
Nathalie Tarassova
Megan Allen
Dr Luis Moran Lara
Semra Zuhal Birol
2022Platelet Summer SchoolReadingProfessor Jon Gibbins,
Dr Alice Pollitt,
Dr Craig Hughes,
Dr Chris Jones
2022Platelet Society Annual MeetingHullDr Simon Calaminus, Dr Monica Arman,
Dr Francisco Rivero,
Dr Ahmed Aburima

ECR Meeting
Dr Jo Mitchell,
Dr Julia Sandrin-Gauer,
Dr Lloyd Atkinson,
Dr Leigh Naylor-Adamson
20212nd Platelet Society Meeting (including the ECR meeting) KeeleDr Alan Harper, Dr Amanda Unsworth, Carly Kempster, Dr Kirk Taylor, Dr Davide Cabrera, Dr Paul Armstrong
20202nd ECR meeting (virtual)LondonDr Kirk Taylor, Dr Paul Armstrong
20191st Platelet Society Annual MeetingCambridgeDr Matthew Harper
20181st ECR meetingManchesterDr Dina Vara, Dr Samantha Moore
2017Platelet Summer SchoolReadingProfessor Jon Gibbins,
Dr Alice Pollitt,
Dr Craig Hughes,
Dr Chris Jones
2017UK Platelet Group & 1st Italian-UK Platelet MeetingBathDr Giodano Pula
2016Join BSHT/UK Platelet Group/AiP MeetingLeedsProf Robert Ariens
201515th UK Platelet Group MeetingLeicesterProf Alison Goodall
2014European Platelet Summer SchoolReadingPro Jon Gibbins
2014Joint BSHT/UK Platelet Group/UKHCDOEdinburgh
201314th UK Platelet Group MeetingBirminghamProf Yotis Senis, Dr Steve Thomas
2012Joint BSHT/13th UK Platelet Group meeting Bath
201113th UK Platelet Group MeetingCardiffDr Val O'Donnell
201012th UK Platelet Group MeetingNottinghamProf Stan Heptinstall
2009Joint 11th UK Platelet Group/French meetingToulouse
200810th UK Platelet Group meetingBradfordProf Khalid Naseem
20079th UK Platelet Group/1st Netherlands Platelet Group meetingLondonDr Kalwant Authi
20068th UK Platelet Group meetingReadingProf Jon Gibbins
2005UK Platelet Summer SchoolBirminghamProf Steve Watson
20057th UK Platelet Group MeetingDublin
20046th UK Platelet Group Meeting & 2nd UK-Japan Platelet ConferenceOxford
2003No meeting because of ISTH Congress in Birmingham
20025th UK Platelet GRoup MeetingNottingham
2001UK Platelet Summer SchoolBirminghamProf Steve Watson
20014th UK Platelet Group meetingCambridge
20003rd UK Platelet Group MeetingBristol
19992nd UK Platelet Group MeetingLeicester
19981st UK Platelet Group MeetingOxfordProf Steve Watson