Biography

Dr Elizabeth Renzoni obtained her medical degree and completed her training in respiratory medicine at the University of Siena, Italy, and subsequently specialised in interstitial lung diseases (ILD) in the regional ILD specialist centre in Siena. 

In 1999, she was awarded an European Respiratory Society (ERS) research fellowship to study the genetic predisposition to interstitial lung diseases at the Interstitial Lung Disease Unit at Royal Brompton Hospital. She continued research and clinical activities as a clinical research fellow in the Unit, and completed a PhD in gene expression analysis in pulmonary fibrosis with Imperial College, London. 

In 2006, she was appointed consultant physician in the Interstitial Lung Disease Unit at the Royal Brompton Hospital. She is a member of the British Thoracic Society, of the European Respiratory Society, of the Pan-London Interstitial Lung Disease Network and is an honorary faculty member of the PhD programme in cellular biology and physiopathology at the University of Siena, Italy.

Areas of expertise

Dr Renzoni is a consultant respiratory physician at Royal Brompton Hospital and an honorary senior lecturer at Imperial College London.

Her specialist interests include: 

• connective tissue disease-associated interstitial lung diseases
• idiopathic interstitial pneumonias
• sarcoidosis and hypersensitivity pneumonitis
• Langerhans' cell histiocytosis
• Lymphangioleyomyomatosis
• constrictive bronchiolitis
• alveolar proteinosis.

Research interests

Dr Renzoni's laboratory research has focused on the study of genetic associations with lung fibrosis, fibroblast gene expression of fibroblasts isolated from different patterns of lung fibrosis, vascular and lymphatic remodelling in idiopathic and scleroderma-associated lung fibrosis.

From a clinical research perspective, she is the primary investigator (PI) for a clinical trial to study the effects of supplemental oxygen in fibrotic lung diseases, funded by the national institute for health research (NIHR) Research for Patient Benefit funding stream. She is also currently the PI of a study funded by the Raynaud’s and Scleroderma Association to evaluate the role of gastro-esophageal reflux in the development and progression of ILD in the context of scleroderma. 

Publications

Dr Renzoni publishes on clinical and translational research aspects of respiratory and interstitial lung diseases. She has written several book chapters on ILD and sarcoidosis. She regularly reviews research and clinical manuscripts for international journals.