I am passionate about helping people with heart failure and about improving both their quality and length of life. I believe the future lies with new biological treatments to repair the weakened and failing heart muscle, such as the UK’s first clinical cardiac gene therapy trials which I lead. I have also observed a growing epidemic of heart problems caused by cancer treatment. I believe that with improved detection strategies and early treatment we can have a massive impact on this condition, enabling more people to enjoy life free of both cancer and heart problems. I also offer diagnostic assessment and treatment for a wide range of cardiac symptoms including breathlessness, ankle swelling, chest pain, palpitations and dizziness. Expertise I have expertise and many years’ experience in all aspects of cardiology including assessment of breathlessness, chest pains, ankle swelling, palpitations and dizzy spells. My specialist interests are:

• Heart failure
• Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, stress, cardiac symptoms and cardiac health
• Cardiac problems in individuals with cancer, including surveillance and protection from the cardiotoxicity of cancer treatment
• Conditions diagnosed and treated
• Heart failure
• High blood pressure (hypertension)
• Cardiac problems caused by cancer treatments
• Takotsubo cardiomyopathy and stress-induced cardiac problems
• Angina and coronary artery disease
• Valvular heart disease including aortic stenosis, aortic regurgitation, mitral stenosis and mitral regurgitation
• Arrhythmias including atrial fibrillation
• Symptoms investigated
• Breathlessness
• Ankle swelling
• Chest pain
• Palpitations
• Dizzyness, fainting and blackouts
• Stress (psychological or physical) and cardiac symptoms and high blood pressure
• Post-treatment cardiac symptoms such as high blood pressure or changes in heart function during and after cancer treatment
• Post treatment cardiac symptoms are known to arise after chemotherapy (for example during or following doxorubicin

(Adriamycin), epirubicin or after patients have received ‘designer’ targeted cancer therapies such as those in the list below:

• Trastuzumab (Herceptin)
• Pertuzumab (Perjeta)
• Lapatinib (Tyverb)
• Sunitinib (Sutent)
• Sorafenib (Nexavar)
• Pazopanib (Votrient)
• Imatinib (Glivec)
• Vandetanib (Caprelsa)
• Axitinib (Inlyta)
• Vemurafenib (Zelboraf)
• Dabrafenib (Tafinlar)
• Nilotinib (Tasigna)
• Procedures performed

I offer the following procedures for diagnosis and treatment:

• ECG (electrocardiogram)
• Echocardiogram (cardiac ultrasound)
• Cardiac magnetic resonance scan (cardiac MRI)
• Myocardial perfusion scans
• 24 hour, 48 hour and 7 day Holter (ECG monitor)
• 24 hour blood pressure monitor
• Exercise stress test (ECG)
• Cardio-pulmonary exercise test
• Exercise or dobutamine stress echocardiogram
• CT Coronary angiogram
• Research interests
• New treatments for heart failure including gene therapy and stem cell therapy
• Prevention and treatment of cardiotoxicity of modern cancer treatments
• Stress and the heart, including Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy and ‘broken heart syndrome’
• Cardiac arrest and sudden cardiac death

Dr Alexander Lyon studied medicine at Oxford University, gaining a first in Physiology in 1995 and graduating from the John Radcliffe School of Medicine three years later. He then specialised in cardiology, first in Oxford and then gaining experience at the Royal Brompton in London and in Sydney, Australia. He returned to the UK to become more involved in cardiac research and was awarded a PhD and numerous prizes for his work on cardiac gene therapy and ventricular arrhythmias in 2008. In 2008, he spent a year in New York at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and, on his return, completed his training in London before taking up his current post as a Consultant Cardiologist at the Royal Brompton Hospital.

Dr Lyon is a heart failure specialist at the Royal Brompton Hospital, where he is Clinical Lead for the new Cardio-Oncology Service, and the Heart Failure Research Theme Lead in the Cardiovascular Biomedical Research Unit. He is currently running a project assessing at the effectiveness of cardiac gene therapy to treat individuals with advanced heart failure. Dr Lyon chairs the National UK Cardio-Oncology Consortium, and also leads the European Society of Cardiology Taskforce on Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy.

Consultant Cardiologist and Senior Clinical Lecturer at the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust.

English

Availability for Consultations

Mon:

Tue: 

Wed: 

Thu: In Clinic / 17.00 – 19.00

Fri:  

Sat: 

*other times may be available on request

Dr Alex Lyon has a financial interest in the Devonshire Diagnostic Centre Limited

Self Pay Initial consult: £400 (up to 30 minutes) 1st Follow up: £300 (30 minutes) Follow up: £250 (30 minutes) Initial consult: £500 if second opinion with review of previous medical notes/results 1st Follow up: £300 (30 minutes) Follow up: £250 (30 minutes) Insured Initial consult: Within the schedule of charges for specific insurance companies** Follow up: Within the schedule of charges for specific insurance companies** *If you want to book a 60 minute appointment, the fees are £800 for an initial consultation and £600 for 1st follow up appointment. All further follow up appointments are £500. **If your policy covers consultations, there will be no shortfall to pay (but you may have an excess on your policy). Please also note that some policies do not cover consultations – always check your policy conditions or contact with your insurer as necessary. ***A cancellation fee will be charged if the appointment is cancelled with less than 24 hours notice and/or you decide not to attend.