John Cosh

Who was John Cosh?

John Cosh was a British rheumatologist. He is known for his long term studies of the effects of rheumatoid arthritis, co-discovery of the genes associated with rheumatoid arthritis, and his work on the benefits of herbal medicines.

In 1973, with R K Jacoby and M I Jayson, he published an 11 year follow-up of 100 patients newly diagnosed as having rheumatoid arthritis and followed them for a further 30 years, showing that rheumatoid arthritis is a progressive disease impairing function for decades after onset. By 2004 eight of the sample were severely disabled with rheumatoid arthritis, three were less disabled, and only five had normal functioning. Of the 84 who died, median survival was reduced by 10 to 11 years, and the leading cause of death was heart disease.

In 1986 he published, with other rheumatologists, a study that showed the association of rheumatoid arthritis with several human lymphocyte antigens; the associations were stronger in patients with more advanced disease.

John Cosh had originally wanted to be a heart surgeon, but his interests shifted towards cardiology and then to the cardiological aspects of rheumatology. He was born in Bristol, the son of a pharmacist.