Setor Kunutsor, BSc, MD, MPhil(cantab), PhD(cantab)

Dr. Setor Kunutsor is a clinical cardiovascular epidemiologist and population health scientist whose research focuses on understanding the burden, presentation, prevention, and management of cardiovascular disease and related outcomes. He is particularly interested in the role of modifiable lifestyle factors in the primary and secondary prevention of adverse cardiovascular events. His work also emphasizes disparities in cardiovascular health, exploring sex, ethnic, racial, and socioeconomic differences in disease development, prevention, treatment, and outcomes.

To achieve these objectives, Dr. Kunutsor employs a diverse range of methodologies, including epidemiological analyses of longitudinal and real-world data, evidence synthesis, primary data collection, and interventional studies. He has published over 400 peer-reviewed articles, many of which have generated international media and public attention. His expertise has been featured on major platforms, including the BBC and CBC.

Setor Kunutsor is a professor and the Evelyn Wyrzykowski Research Chair in Cardiology in the section of cardiology, department of internal medicine, at the University of Manitoba. A clinical cardiovascular epidemiologist and population health scientist, his research focuses on the burden, prevention and management of cardiovascular disease, particularly the role of modifiable lifestyle factors in reducing adverse outcomes. His work also addresses disparities in cardiovascular health, examining sex, ethnic, racial and socioeconomic differences in disease development, treatment and outcomes.

Kunutsor applies a range of research methodologies, including epidemiological analyses of longitudinal and real-world data, evidence synthesis, primary data collection and interventional studies. He has published more than 400 peer-reviewed articles, many of which have been featured in international media, including the BBC and CBC.

He earned a PhD in cardiovascular epidemiology from the University of Cambridge’s Cardiovascular Epidemiology Unit in 2014. His doctoral research examined the observational and genetic associations between liver dysfunction markers and coronary heart disease risk. He has since applied his expertise in evidence synthesis to various healthcare areas, including clinical guideline development. He was a lead methodologist for the first national guideline for menopause in England and Wales.

His work extends internationally. He is a steering committee member of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes–Primary Care Diabetes Europe Study Group and an honorary visiting professor at the University of Leicester. He also serves as an honorary senior lecturer in evidence synthesis at the University of Bristol and collaborates on major global research initiatives, including the Sudden Cardiac Death Collaboration and the Global CRF Collaboration.

Kunutsor is also a dedicated supervisor and mentor, supporting students and early-career researchers, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds, to help them become active contributors in academia and healthcare.

His contributions to cardiovascular research have been widely recognized. In 2024, he was awarded the Evelyn Wyrzykowski Research Chair in Cardiology and received the Geroscience Outstanding Original Research Paper Award and a Mayo Clinic Proceedings Highly Cited Article recognition. In 2022, Expertscape ranked him among the top global experts in physical fitness and cardiorespiratory fitness.

Kunutsor continues to lead research on cardiovascular health while mentoring the next generation of scientists and healthcare professionals.

Education

• Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Cardiovascular Epidemiology, University of Cambridge, UK, 2014
• Master of Studies (MSt) in Public Health, University of Cambridge, UK, 2007
• Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery (MBChB), University of Ghana Medical School, Accra, Ghana, 2002
• Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Medical Sciences, University of Ghana, Legon, Ghana, 1998

Awards

2024

• Evelyn Wyrzykowski Research Chair in Cardiology
• Mayo Clinic Proceedings Highly Cited Article
• Geroscience Outstanding Original Research Paper Award

2022

• Globally ranked expert (Expertscape) in physical fitness and cardiorespiratory fitness