Meena Upadhyaya

DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR (HON) AT CARDIFF UNIVERSITY, MEDICAL GENETICISTS, FOUNDER OF WELSH ASIAN WOMEN ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS AND ETHNIC MINORITY WOMEN IN WELSH HEALTHCARE

Born in India and moved to the UK at 19 as a housewife. Meena Upadhyaya studied for Masters Degree in Edinburgh after being encouraged to study by her husband, then completed a doctorate in reproductive medicine. She later built her career as a widow after her husband died young in his thirties. Based in Cardiff for many years, Upadhyaya has spent her career focusing on genetic disorders, developing pioneering tests to aid in the diagnosis of more than 20 genetic diseases. As a founder of the Welsh Asian Women Achievement Awards and Ethnic Minority Women in Welsh Healthcare, she received an OBE in 2016 for “services to medical genetics and the Welsh Asian community”. She was elected a Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales in 2018.