Heather Ashton

Chrystal Heather Champion was born in Dehradun, northern India, to Harry Champion, a British silviculturalist, and Chrystal (Parsons) Champion, a secretary.[1][2][4] From the age of six, she attended a boarding school in Swanage, Dorset, England.[1] When WWII began, she was evacuated to West Chester, Pennsylvania; during the crossing, her ship was attacked by a U-boat.[1]

Ashton went on to study Medicine at Somerville College, Oxford,[2] graduating with a First Class Honours Degree (BA) in Physiology in 1951.[3] She earned her medical degree (DM) in 1956.[3] She completed professional training at Middlesex Hospital.[1] She was elected as a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, London, in 1975.[3]

In 1965, Ashton joined the faculty at Newcastle University, first in the Department of Pharmacology and later in the Department of Psychiatry.[1][3] From 1982 to 1994, she ran a benzodiazepine withdrawal clinic at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle.[2] She was on the executive committee of the North East Council on Addictions.[1][5] Ashton also helped set up the British organisation Victims of Tranquillisers (VOT).[3][6] She also gave evidence to British government committees on tobacco smoking, cannabis and benzodiazepines.[3][7]

Ashton died on 15 September 2019 at her home in Newcastle upon Tyne, at age 90.[2]

Ashton's developed her expertise in the effects of psychoactive drugs and the effects of substances such as nicotine and cannabis on the brain.[1]

During the 1960s, benzodiazepines, like diazepam and temazepam, had become popular and were seen as safe and effective treatments for anxiety or insomnia.[1][2][4] One study found that the overdose death rate among patients taking both benzodiazepines and opioids was 10 times higher than among those who only took opioids.[2]

Ashton's research on these drugs found that they could be used in the short term, but could lead to physical dependence over the long-term.[2] She also recognised that this benzodiazepine withdrawal syndrome was very different from those addicted to illegal drugs.[1] This led to her writing an important manual to help those who were trying to stop their prescribed benzodiazepine. This manual is now used all over the world.[1][2][3] This book, Benzodiazepines: How They Work and How to Withdraw, was first published in 1999;[7] it has become known as the Ashton Manual and has been translated into 11 languages.[1][2] Ashton's research was influential, leading to changes in prescribing practices and guidelines recommended for benzodiazepines in 2013.[2] Her research on psychotropic drugs led to over 200 journal articles, chapters and books, including over 50 papers concerning benzodiazepines alone.[4]