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To be accorded the distinguished professor title in Malaysia is not a common occurrence. In fact, it is so rare that only five people have had the honour of receiving the award, which is granted to top academics in recognition of their scholarly and professional contributions.
Among them is Prof Datuk Dr Looi Lai Meng, who will be turning 72 this year. In 2010, she was among three inaugural recipients being conferred the title, after having been promoted to the rank of senior professor in 2003.
In a recent interview with StarEdu, she described her 40-year academic career as “challenging and enriching”, pointing to her extensive research on amyloidosis, nephropathology and oncopathology which has drawn more than RM2.4mil in research grants, resulted in over 250 peer-reviewed publications including in prestigious journals such as Nature, Cancer and Lancet, and received more than 4,200 citations.
She has also delivered over 600 conference papers and 500 guest lectures worldwide.Currently, Prof Looi is contributing her expertise at Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) as the nation’s longest-serving diagnostic renal pathologist. She is also the chair of the UMMC-Medical Research Ethics Committee, and a member of the UM Senate and the External Academic Evaluators Committee.
Prof Looi’s interest in the medical field started early. As a child growing up in Bentong, Pahang, she took inspiration from her father, who worked as an assistant in a hospital.
“In Bentong, where there were usually no doctors available, my father was the surrogate ‘country doctor’.
“Although constantly busy, he was always patient, kind and helpful to people who were suffering at any time of the day or night. This sense of service inspired me to become a medical doctor,” she said.
With the goal in mind, she obtained her medical degree at the University of Singapore (currently National University of Singapore) in 1975 and completed her postgraduate training in surgical pathology at UM in 1980.
Her doctoral research documented several novel forms of amyloidosis among Malaysians, the first major work to demonstrate differences from Western populations which had until then dominated scientific literature.
She subsequently worked on cancer prognostic and predictive factors, and was awarded fellowships at the Royal Colleges of Pathologists of Australasia and the United Kingdom.More recently, she has expanded her scope to include machine learning and artificial intelligence focusing on advancements in the laboratory assessment of cancer.
Throughout her journey, Prof Looi has had her fair share of challenges.
In 1983, the untimely death of UM Department of Pathology head Prof Kesavan Prathap, who was her academic supervisor, came as a tremendous blow to her as she had to struggle to complete her research doctorate without a mentor.
“At the same time, even though only a young academic, I was called upon to assume leadership of the department at a time when brain drain had depleted it of almost all its academics,” she recalled.In strategising the rejuvenation of the department, she sought advice from her teachers in Singapore and built linkages with the British Council and the Royal College of Pathologists in the UK.
“The department became my second home and its survival my prime focus,” she shared.
Her hard work eventually paid off with the emergence of a premier diagnostic and academic pathology department at UM, with spin-offs nationwide.
Other major challenges Prof Looi has faced included steering her department through the first onslaught of HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) in the 1980s and the Nipah virus outbreak in 1998 and 1999.
“Sensitivity and leadership were required to guide the staff to overcome their fear of the unknown and to adhere to their sense of duty during those difficult times,” she said.Looking back, Prof Looi said having a role model in the late Prof Kesavan had helped in her career progression.
Describing him as a perfectionist with attention to detail and exemplary work ethics, Prof Looi said, “He grounded my interest in renal pathology through challenging projects together to study the patterns of renal pathology in Malaysia, which produced several seminal papers.
“From there, I developed confidence to provide renal pathology consultation services nationwide, and also conducted several workshops to update understanding of renal histopathology.”
Prof Looi is the founding president of the College of Pathologists, Academy of Medicine Malaysia, and was instrumental in developing pathology laboratory accreditation for Malaysia, the Pathology Act and several national guidelines on medical laboratory practices.
She was also part of the multinational team of renal pathologists who formulated the International Society of Nephrology and Renal Pathology Society (ISN/RPS) revised Classification of Lupus Nephritis 2003, replacing the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) existing classification.
She is the only woman among the 50 founding fellows of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia and is also the first woman to be appointed senior fellow, bearing the title of academician in 2005.
Other accolades she has won include the Asean Outstanding Scientist Award, the Merdeka Award 2016 (Health, Science and Technology category) and Honorary Professor of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences-Peking Union Medical College.
On being awarded the distinguished professor title, she said, “It is a humbling feeling to be honoured for a career that has already given me so much fulfilment.
“The award also sends an encouraging message that gender is not a barrier to what you can achieve,” she said.
When asked her retirement plans, she said, “Retirement is an artificial cut-off and is quite meaningless to me. I will continue to contribute as long as I can be useful.”
She shared that for the past 20 years, she has extended her work beyond pathology to the broader field of science and health policy, and her realm of activity beyond the university into professional bodies nationally and globally.
For undergraduates who are just starting out, Prof Looi had some words of advice: “The undergraduate years are unique and one of the best times of your life. Open your mind to new ideas and new friends, and find your moral compass.
”When I started my academic career, I did not follow a ‘Road to Ulung’ – there was no such position then.“Follow your passion; it will make the burdens easier. And don’t be afraid of challenges; they make success more meaningful.”