[Perspectives] Aliasgar Esmail: innovation in TB and HIV research and medicine

“During medical school, I came across a professor who introduced me to research—up until that point, I was content with being an excellent clinician, but that was the moment when I realised that I was missing out on making a larger impact on the population at large”, recalls Assistant Professor Aliasgar Esmail, Pulmonologist at the Groote Schuur Hospital and Deputy Head of the Centre for Lung Infection and Immunity at the University of Cape Town (UCT) Lung Institute in South Africa. As one of two recipients of the 2024 Stephen Lawn TB-HIV Research Leadership Prize, Esmail felt “so overwhelmed and humbled” to have received the award.