Professor Sachith Mettananda - Biography

Professor Sachith Mettananda graduated MBBS from University of Colombo in 2004 with First Class Honours, nine distinctions and the Gold Medal for the best performance in the final MBBS. He obtained MD in Paediatrics from the University of Colombo and was Board Certified as a Specialist in Paediatrics in Sri Lanka in 2013. He obtained Doctor of Philosophy degree (DPhil) in Clinical Laboratory Sciences at the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine of University of Oxford in 2015, studying novel genetic-based curative treatment strategies for thalassaemia. He is an elected Fellow of the Royal College of Paediatric and Child Health (FRCPCH), the Royal College of Physicians in London (FRCP), the Royal College of Physicians in Edinburgh (FRCPE) in the UK and the National Academy of Sciences of Sri Lanka (FNASSL).

Professor Mettananda is a leading Clinician, Scientist and Researcher in Sri Lanka. He is currently the Chair Professor of Paediatrics and the Chairperson of the Research Council of University of Kelaniya. He is the Lead Consultant Paediatrician of the University Paediatrics Unit and the Paediatric Thalassaemia Unit of Colombo North Teaching Hospital, Sri Lanka. He also holds the post of Secretary of the Board of Study in Paediatrics at Postgraduate Institute of Medicine, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

As a leading researcher in Paediatrics and Paediatric Haematology, he conducts high-quality laboratory, clinical, and translational research on thalassaemia. He has authored over 100 scientific publications, of which many are in high-impact journals, including first- or senior-author publications in Blood, Nature Communications, Haematologica and Scientific Reports. His most notable research achievement is the identification of a-globin silencing as a potential pathway to cure thalassaemia. He described two independent pathways to silence a-globin through epigenetic drug targeting and genome editing, which are in development to devise a cure for thalassaemia. Additionally, he conducted the first-ever randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy of hydroxyurea for thalassaemia. His research was funded by grants from the Medical Research Council of the UK, the Academy of Medical Sciences in the UK, and the National Research Council of Sri Lanka.

Professor Mettananda has authored many books and book chapters in paediatrics. These include the Concise Textbook of Pediatrics (Samudra Publishers), the Concise Handbook of Pediatric Emergencies and Critical Care (Samudra Publishers) and A Guide to Paediatric Red Blood Cell Disorders (Nova Science Publishers). He is an Associate Editor of BMC Pediatrics and an Editorial Board Member of Ceylon Medical Journal and Sri Lanka Journal of Child Health.

He has won many National and International Awards for research, including the Commonwealth Scholarship Award, the President’s Award for Scientific Publications in Sri Lanka, and the Ten Outstanding Young Persons (TOYP) Award for Medical Research. He delivered five orations, including Sri Lanka Medical Association Oration, Sri Lanka College of Paediatricians Oration, and Kandy Society of Medicine Oration. He was selected as the most Outstanding Early-Carrier Paediatrician in Sri Lanka by the Sri Lanka College of Paediatricians, Young Physician Leader by the National Academy of Science of Sri Lanka and Inter Academy Partnership. He was ranked among the top 2% of scientists in the World by Elsevier BV and Stanford University, USA.

He also serves as an advisor on many committees involved in health policy decision-making in Sri Lanka. Notably, he is a Council Member of the National Thalassaemia Council, Sri Lanka College of Paediatricians, Perinatal Society of Sri Lanka and Rare Disease Forum of Sri Lanka. He is a member of the National Health Research Council, Clinical Trials Evaluation Committee of the National Medicinal Regulatory Authority, National Guideline Committee on Deworming of Children and Pregnant Mothers, and Formulary Revision Sub-Committee for Drugs related to Nutrition and Blood in Sri Lanka.