Meet Padma Shri Dr Soniya Nityanand, doctor par excellence

Dr Soniya Nityanand, a well-respected figure in the medical community, is currently serving as Professor and Head of the Department of Hematology at Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS), Lucknow. With a career spanning over three decades, she has made significant contributions to both immunology and hematology.

Dr Nityanand began her medical journey at King George's Medical College (KGMC), Lucknow, where she completed her MBBS and later her MD in Medicine. After this, she pursued a Ph.D in Immunology from the renowned Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. She started her teaching career as an Assistant Professor in Medicine at KGMC from October 1991 to November 1993. She then joined SGPGIMS as a faculty member in November 1993, initially in the Department of Immunology, and later moved to the Department of Hematology, where she now leads the team.

Over the years, Dr Nityanand has earned several prestigious awards. These include the Indian National Science Academy Young Scientist Award (1990), the DBT National Biosciences Career Award (2003–04), the Dr JC Patel and BC Mehta Award by the Association of Physicians of India (2000), and two top honours during her MD, the Dr NN Gupta Gold Medal and the Chancellor’s Medal for Best Medical Student.

Her research focuses on immune mechanisms behind diseases like Takayasu’s arteritis, a rare vascular condition mostly found in young women in India, Southeast Asia, and Japan, and the immunological causes of aplastic anaemia. She has made significant findings in these areas, many of which have been published in respected international journals. Her work on how anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) works in aplastic anaemia is also widely acknowledged.

Dr Nityanand has a clear aim: to bring the benefits of scientific research directly to patients. She played a key role in starting the Bone Marrow Transplant Programme at SGPGIMS and has successfully completed 25 transplants for various blood-related diseases. She is also exploring stem cell transplantation for repairing and regenerating damaged tissues.

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