Faculty Spotlight

Anna Lok

Anna Lok, MD, FRCP, AGAF, FAASLD, is the Alice Lohrman Andrews Research Professor in Hepatology, assistant dean for clinical research, and director of clinical hepatology.

Dr. Lok earned her medical degree from the University of Hong Kong and advanced her hepatology training under Sheila Sherlock at the Royal Free Hospital in London. She was on the faculty at the University of Hong Kong until she moved to the United States in 1992. She joined the U-M faculty in 1995 as a professor of internal medicine.

Her research, which is funded by the National Institutes of Health, federal and private foundations, and various pharmaceutical companies, focuses on the natural history and treatment of hepatitis B and C, and the prevention of liver cancer. She has published more than 400 papers on viral hepatitis and liver diseases, and was recognized by Thomson Reuters as being among the top 1 percent of most frequently cited researchers from 2002–12.

In 2017, Dr. Lok became the 68th president of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). She is the first University of Michigan faculty and the fourth woman to hold this position. During Dr. Lok’s tenure as president, AASLD has:

  • advanced collaboration with national and regional liver societies in training the next generation of hepatologists.
  • co-sponsored National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) report on strategies to eliminate viral hepatitis in the United States.
  • expanded its global footprint:
    • created research methodology workshops in China and Mexico.
    • collaborated with the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) to conduct Masterclass in Paris to train the next generation of hepatology leaders and to connect future leaders in the two continents.
    • supported WHO and CDC effort in global elimination of viral hepatitis.
    • sponsored and supported World Hepatitis Summit 2017 held in São Paulo, Brazil with the theme: Implementing the Global Health Sector Strategy on Viral Hepatitis (GHSS): Towards the elimination of hepatitis as a public health threat.
    • provided $3.34 million in research and career development awards and travel grants from the AASLD Foundation.
    • mobilized increase in member donations to AASLD Foundation from 5% to 13.5%.
    • awarded $300,000 through the Innovation Fund for creative ideas to improve patient care.
    • established the Cirrhosis Quality Collaborative to provide guidance on quality improvement in hepatology care.
    • launched Hepatology Communications in February 2017 - a new open access journal which was listed in PubMed within its first year.
    • used social media to reach younger members and the hepatology community - increasing her Twitter following from 700+ to 1800+ in one year.

Dr. Lok has received many awards throughout her career. She has been included in the list of “Best Doctors” and “Who’s Who” for many years. Other recent awards include:

  • 2016, the prestigious William Beaumont Prize from the American Gastroenterological Association
  • 2015, Distinguished Achievement Award from the American Liver Foundation
  • 2014, Inspirational Award from the American Medical Association

In addition, Dr. Lok has been inducted into the Association of American Physicians, received the Outstanding Women in Science Award from the American Gastroenterological Association and the Hugh R. Butt Award for Distinguished Achievement in Clinical Research in Hepatology from the Digestive Health Foundation.

Dr. Lok's dedication, heart, and deep caring for improving the lives of those suffering from liver disease have led to incredible results.