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Dr Wen Su, a postdoctoral researcher at the Leverhulme Centre for Demographic Science (LCDS), has been awarded a prestigious Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowship for his project, Rethinking socioeconomic inequalities in mortality through comorbidity at death.
Socioeconomic inequalities in mortality persist across high-income countries, with people from disadvantaged backgrounds often experiencing shorter lives. However, research into these inequalities has traditionally focused on a single underlying cause of death, despite many individuals having multiple health conditions at the end of life.
Using population-level data from the United States, England and Wales, and Australia, Wen's research will examine comorbidity at death, which refers to multiple co-occurring conditions recorded on death certificates, to explore how these patterns are associated with socioeconomic inequalities in mortality and longevity.
The three-year fellowship will begin in May 2027.
Reflecting on the award, Wen said:
"I'm very grateful for the opportunity to pursue this research through the Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship. Understanding why some population groups live longer than others remains a longstanding question in demographic research. By looking beyond a single cause of death, I hope to develop a more complete picture of socioeconomic inequalities in mortality and demonstrate how demographic methods can offer new perspectives on this important issue."
The Leverhulme Trust's Early Career Fellowships support researchers at an early stage of their academic careers to undertake significant research projects and develop their research independence.
Congratulations to Wen on this fantastic achievement!
Find out more about the Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellowships.
