I have 14 years prior clinical experience working as a Therapeutic Radiographer in the NHS and 20 years experience in academia; as a researcher and lecturer. I lead on the Cancer Management Research cluster; part of the Aging and Long-term conditions research theme in the Applied Health and Care Research Centre. I am also the Director of the Health Research Institute.

My main research area is radiotherapy for patients diagnosed with breast cancer. I am the Principal Investigator on two breast cancer studies (The SuPPORT 4 All Project, and The Respire project).

I qualified as a Therapeutic Radiographer from the Royal London Hospital (Whitechapel) and worked for the NHS for 14 years in Radiotherapy and Oncology where my specialist area was pre-treatment imaging.

I started my PhD while a clinical radiographer working at the Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust. I was awarded a fellowship from the Department of Health to complete my PhD, which was a randomized clinical trial investigating different radiotherapy protocols for patients treated for breast cancer.

I joined Sheffield Hallam University on completion of my PhD and have 20 years of experience of teaching Radiotherapy and Oncology at undergraduate and postgraduate level. My specialist research areas include radiotherapy for breast cancer, radiotherapy workforce development, e-learning, and randomised controlled trials. I am an experienced doctoral supervisor and examiner and was awarded a University Inspirational Research Supervisor award in 2014.

I am founder and chair of the Breast Radiotherapy Interest Group (BRIG) and chief investigator for two radiotherapy breast cancer studies: 1. The SuPPORT 4 All study, where we co-designed (with patients and healthcare practitioners) a novel support bra for women to wear during breast irradiation, and 2. The RESPIRE project where a series of online patient resources have been developed (through a co-design methodology) to support patients undergoing breath hold techniques as part of their radiotherapy. I have participated in the development a number of national radiotherapy guidelines including the 2015 and 2020 College of Radiographers Radiotherapy skin care guidelines, The Royal College of Radiologist UK consensus statements for postoperative radiotherapy for breast cancer, and the College of Radiographers Patient, Public, and Practitioner Partnership within Imaging and Radiotherapy: Guiding Principles.

My research interests are in workforce development and breast irradiation. My research into breast irradiation evolved directly from my clinical practice experience and my PhD research to develop understanding of the impact of technical delivery of radiotherapy on patient outcomes, service efficiency and variations in practice across radiotherapy centres. My PhD was a large randomised controlled trial (n=360) focusing on assessing the implications of radiotherapy protocols for breast cancer, the impact on the patient and the use of NHS resources. The overarching priority of this research was to identify protocols that would maximise use of scarce NHS resources while not diminishing the quality of the applied treatments while also investigating patient choice regarding the use of permanent tattoos for treatment alignment.

My subsequent research in this field has focused on a method to improve treatment reproducibility and to provide patient modesty (SuPPORT 4 All study). The SuPPORT 4 All study (a nationally funded project) again focuses on enhancing treatment accuracy while minimising radiation side effects, notably skin (dry and moist desquamation) and heart toxicity (ischemic heart disease) while enhancing patient dignity.