Marshall's earliest years were in war torn London, prior to moving to St Pauls Cray near Orpington in Kent. He had primary tuberculosis as a child and spent some years away from the family in a variety of sanatoria and as a consequence was late starting school at the age of seven. He graduated with a BSc in Zoology from Sir John Cass College, London in 1965 and then began his 50-year career in eye research starting at the Institute of Ophthalmology. In 1968 he was awarded a PhD (Medicine anatomy) from the University of London for a thesis entitled "Laser-induced damage in the retina". His postgraduate supervisor was Kit Pedler, known for creating the cybermen of Doctor Who fame.
Career and research
In 1983 he became Sembal Professor of Experimental Ophthalmology at the Institute of Ophthalmology then based in Judd Street, London. In 1991 he moved to St Thomas' Hospital, UMDS to become the Frost Professor of Ophthalmology, honorary consultant and Head of Department of Ophthalmology. He has published extensively in the field of ophthalmology, on a broad range of ocular problems. This has included age-related, diabetic and inherited retinal disease; lens and intraocular lens design, development of lasers for diagnosis and surgery, light and ageing, refractive surgery and problems of the vitreous and glaucoma. He produced and patented the revolutionary Excimer laser, the grandfather patent for corneal laser refractive surgery[2][4][5][6][7][8][9] He also created the world's first Diode laser for treating eye problems of diabetes, glaucoma and ageing.[3][10][11] He has sat on and chaired many national and international committees* concerned with protecting the public against the possible damaging effects of lasers and other artificial light sources and played a leading role with the ICRC and addressed the United Nations to successfully obtain a Geneva Convention banning the use of anti-personnel laser weapons.[12][13][14][15][16] He is a frequent lecturer at international and national ophthalmology meetings and has successfully supervised 60 candidates for higher doctorate degrees.
*World Health Organisation (WHO), Non-ionizing Radiation Committee of the International Radiological Protection Association, International Electro-Technical Commission (IEC), British Standards Institution (BSI) European Community (EC), International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB), All Party Parliamentary Group on Refractive Surgery
He has chaired and served on the Medical Advisory Boards of many companies in the field of ophthalmology, including Avellino, Avedro, Summitt Technology Inc, Intralase, Diomed and Ellex.
Inventor of excimer laser technology for refractive surgery which formed basis of patent portfolio for "Summit Technology", acquired by Alcon in 2000. In excess of 50 million procedures now having been undertaken worldwide.[2][17][18]
Co-inventor of world's first diode laser for ophthalmology and member of industrial design group that progressed device through to commercialisation (1988)[3]
Co-founder of Diomed, a UK company that was the world's largest supplier of diode laser devices for medical use. board member and Chairman of Medical Advisory Board until 1999.
Co-inventor and founder member of Odyssey Optical Systems, a company formed to commercially exploit devices to image the interior of the eye.[19]
Co-inventor of hardware and optic disc recognition software used in a security-based biometric analysis for Retinal Technologies inc. Founder member of the Company. (2000, Optic disc biometric)[20]
^Marshall, J., Trokel, S., Rothery, S., & Schubert, H. (1985). An Ultrastructural-Study of Corneal Incisions Induced by an Excimer Laser at 193 Nm. Ophthalmology, 92(6), 749–758.
^S. Trokel, S. Rothery R. R. Krueger & J Marshall.(1986) Photoablative reprofiling of the cornea using an Excimer Laser: Photorefractive keratectomy.. Lasers in Ophthalmology, 1: 1, 21–48.
^T. Seiler, S. Rothery and J. Wollensak & J Marshall. (1986) The Potential of an Infrared Hydrogen Fluoride (HF) Laser (3.0nm) for Corneal Surgery (with).Lasers in Ophthalmology, 1: 1, 49–60.
^Tuft S, Marshall J, Rothery S. (1987) Stromal remodelling following photorefractive keratectomy. Lasers in Ophthalmology 1:177–183.
^Munnerlyn, C. R., Koons, S. J., & Marshall, J. (1988). Photorefractive keratectomy: a technique for laser refractive surgery.. J Cataract Refract Surg, 14(1), 46–52.
^Marshall, J. (1988). The potential of lasers in refractive surgery. Journal of the British Contact Lens Association, 1988(5), 43–51.
^McHugh, J.D.A., Marshall, J., Capon, M., Rothery, S., Raven, A. and Naylor, P.R. (1988) Transpupillary Retinal Photocoagulation in the eyes of Rabbit and Human using a Diode Laser. Lasers and Light in Ophthalmology 2: 125 143.
^Moriarty AP, McHugh JDA, Marshall J, ffytche, TJ, and Hamilton AMP.(1993) Long-term follow-up of diode laser tabeculoplasty for open-angle glaucoma and ocular hypertension. Ophthalmology 100:11; 1614–1618
^Marshall, J. (1997). Blinding laser weapons. Still available on the battlefield. British Medical Journal, 315(7120), 1392.
^Hazards of Light: Myths and Realities, Eye and Skin (with J. Cronly Dillon and E.S. Rosen) Pergamon Press, Oxford 1986. ISBN0080320147
^IRPA Guidelines on Protection against Non-Ionizing Radiation. The Collected Publications of The IRPA Non-Ionizing Radiation Committee. Eds AS Duchene, JRA Lakey, MH Repacholi. Pergamon Press, 1991. ISBN0-08-036097-1.
^(15) Marshall, J. (1983). The radiation hazards of lasers and a guide to their control in the laboratory. In R. J. H. Clark, & R. E. Hester (Eds.), Advances in Infrared and Raman Spectroscopy (Vol. 10, pp. 147–217). John Wiley & Sons.
