Meet Gregory Thomas

Gregory S Thomas, MD, MPH is Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of California, Irvine and former Medical Director of the Heart & Vascular Institute of Long Beach Memorial Medical Center in. California. One of the achievements of which he is most proud is developing the Horus mummy research team in 2009 with fellow cardiologists Adel Allam, Randy Thompson, Sam Wann, and Mike Miyamoto. The team soon expanded to include anthropologists and other medical subspecialties.  

Through collaborations with the Institute of Mummy Studies at EURAC and other esteemed colleagues around the world, the team imaged or received the CT images of over 300 mummified individuals from seven different ancient cultures, including two hunter-gather groups. Searching for atherosclerosis, the team found it to be present on CT in some individuals from all seven cultures. The team’s publications surprised the medical profession, as atherosclerosis was previously thought to be a disease of modern lifestyles. It is now accepted as a disease at least 5,000 years old. The Horus and other research teams are now focusing on why humans would develop a such a genetic predisposition to atherosclerosis so long ago.  

Professor Thomas, a leader of leaders, accepted the Supreme Council of Antiquities Award of the 1st International Scientific Conference on Ancient Egyptian Culture on behalf of the Horus team in 2010. The American Society of Nuclear Cardiology honored him with its Presidency in 2007 and in 2023 with its Distinguished Service Award.   

With his colleagues, he has authored more than 250 scientific publications, including a book on the benefits of exercise in 1981 and the current standard medical textbook on exercise testing in 2018.