Prof Cliona O'Farrelly, Research immunologist at St Vincent's and chairwoman of Cancer Research Ireland (a division of the Irish Cancer Society).
Personal/family:Husband Ken Mealy and children Jake (17), Sam (15) and Anna (13).
What figure from the world of medicine or health do you most admire?
Marie Curie, who got the Nobel Prize not once, but twice, for her work on radioactivity.
What other career might you have chosen?
Since I was eight, when I learned to milk my grandfather's cows and drive the pony and cart to the creamery, I've wanted to be a farmer.
If you could grant three wishes for the health service, what would they be?
I would see that political influence is removed from decision-making; that there is real accountability; and that the health service looks to successful own-sized countries rather than always relying on the UK or US systems.
What is your greatest fear?
My biggest fear was that I might not be able to have a family. Now I don't really have any fears.
Have you ever been a patient and were you a good one?
Yes, years ago I was investigated upside down and inside out for infertility.
When or where are you happiest?
Preparing to sit down to our "special dinner" on Sunday evening with the family or in the middle of lab meetings.
How do you cope with stress?
Copious mugs of tea, cycling my bike through Dublin traffic, walking the dog in Wexford, having dinner with Ken and, most effective of all, listening to other people talk about the stress in their lives - it always seems so much worse.
What is the trait you most admire in yourself?
That I'm a happy sort of person.
What is the trait you most dislike in yourself?
That I talk too much.
Do you use alternative or complementary medicine or therapies?
No.
Who or what makes you laugh?
The TV programmes My Family, Father Ted, D'Unbelievables, and the electronic jokes my brother sends me.
What is your motto?
It will be over soon.
What is your favourite TV or radio programme?
Farming News BBC, Rattlebag, Playback, Off the Shelf and any BBC costume drama.
What books would you bring to a desert island?
Ulysses, everything written by Seamus Heaney and Bill Bryson, especially the Short History of Absolutely Everything.