I am a clinical scientist based in the Northern Institute for Cancer Research. I trained principally as a gastroenterologist, my academic career was supported by a Welcome Trust Clinical Scientist award, followed by an AASLD Fellowship and 3 years as a post doctoral scientist in Scott Friedmans Laboratory Mount Sinai Medical School in New York. I am now the clinical lead for the management of patients with hepatocellular cancer (HCC) in the North East of England, promoting translational research within this patient group. HCC complicates chronic liver disease, making targeting the tumour particularly important in these patients. Over the last decade the referrals of patients with this cancer type have increased 10 fold in our region, reflecting both a rising incidence of the disease in obese and diabetic patients, but also the success of the 'Cancer Plan 2000', directing the management of these patients to multidisciplinary teams. My basic science projects focus on the identification of biomarkers and candidates for targeted drug therapy.
