The Foundation for Liver Research; advancing the diagnosis & treatment of liver disease
through groundbreaking research. 

Liver disease will affect someone you know and love. You can help us to improve their chances of early diagnosis and successful treatment through translational research. The Foundation for Liver Research funds and manages the work of research staff and students in partnership with King’s College London University and King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust at the Roger Williams Institute of Liver Studies.

For over 50 years, the Foundation for Liver Research has supported ground-breaking research programmes into liver disease including much of the early pioneering work at King’s College Hospital and Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge into liver transplantation and acute liver failure, under the direction of the charity’s founding Director, Professor Roger Williams.

Since 2016, research has taken place within the FLRs purpose-built Institute, recently
renamed the Roger Williams Institute of Liver Studies (RW-ILS). The RW-ILS represents a
unique clinical academic partnership between the Foundation for Liver Research, King’s College London and King’s College Hospital that encompasses a multi-disciplinary team focused on liver research and the improvement of outcomes for patients with liver diseases. Major areas of research during the past 5 years have included hepatocellular carcinoma, liver tissue engineering, complications of cirrhosis, liver-gut axis, chronic and acute liver disease and liver immunology. Our current research themes include Transplantation, Advanced Therapies & Regenerative Medicine, Steatotic Liver Diseases, Cirrhosis & Gut-Liver Axis, Hepatobiliary Cancer and Paediatric Hepatology & Associated Rare Diseases.

Our Mission

The core mission of the Foundation for Liver Research is to develop and extend research into the human liver and its diseases.

The Foundation, working in partnership with King’s College London, supports research at the Roger Williams Institute of Liver Studies and together with the clinical services of King’s College Hospital, we are King’s Liver. By investing in pre­mier research minds and groundbreaking projects, we aim to deliver tangible advancements for those affected by this devastating illness.

Our Board of Trustees believe that by championing patient-centric scientific research into liver disease at the Institute, the Foundation fulfils its mission to extend and develop knowledge of the human liver and the various ways in which it may become diseased. In doing so, the Foundation is contributing to the development of new methods of diagnosis and treatment which will ultimately be to the benefit of everyone affected by liver disease worldwide.

The Foundation for Liver Research is committed to being a fair employer; we want the Roger Williams Institute of Liver Studies to be a workplace where everybody has equality of opportunity. We are committed to working towards an environment that is respectful to all, fosters diversity and inclusivity, and supports the mental health and wellbeing of all staff and students.

We are a member of Advance HE and the Institute has been awarded a Silver LEAF Award (Laboratory Efficiency Assessment Framework). The Institute was awarded an Athena Swan Bronze Award in 2022 and is currently working to meet the standards of the Athena Swan Silver Award held by the Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine, King's College London. We are proud to be a Living Wage Employer, exceeding London Living Wage for entry level staff year on year.

Partners & Accreditations