Here are a few details about the winners and how they improve research excellence at the Trust.
Dr Laura Burke
To be successful in research requires values that align with those of the Leeds Way. Laura has undertaken work within the National evaluation of plasma exchange in managing patients with acute liver failure. This work done in all UK liver transplant centres has required a truly collaborative approach, negotiating with individual centres and bringing the team together to coordinate findings and outputs. That Laura has been able to do this, whilst maintaining her relationships with all investigators highlights a fairness and honesty that all team members have appreciated.
She has always remained accountable for the project and its delivery, even when the going was tough. One of the most rewarding aspects of research supervision is watching trainees’ development through their time in research. The independence that follows, with the empowerment to take forward other projects is a joy. Most rewarding of all has been seeing how Laura retains her focus on what is important, and that is the direct patient impact of the research that she plans and has done. At all times, she has the intent to improve the care of patients with liver disease and this focus is demonstrated in the success that she has had.
Dr Stephanie Harrison
Steph is an excellent clinician and researcher working towards completing her PhD in genomics. Steph has a sharp intelligence with a caring, empathetic personality, making her ideally suited to be an academic clinician. She puts patients at the centre of her work and has an excellent rapport at the bedside with patients and staff alike. She has completed her Associate Principal Investigator (PI) training with the AXIS international multicentre study. She leads an international European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) task force to develop definitions and guidelines for treating resistant psoriatic disease. She has secured funding from prestigious national bodies and is well on her way to being a leader in Spondyloarthritis.
Dr Chand Muthoo
Chand is outstanding as a trainee without a formal academic pathway, doing work in his own time to pursue his interests. Chand has won 2 international awards from the European Society of Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiology as a top 20 researcher in 2022 and again in 2024 for improving the quality of imaging in colorectal cancer. Chand has had numerous research abstracts published at this area’s leading international speciality meeting, with oral presentations in 2022-23 and forthcoming in 2025.
Chand takes responsibility for developing research ideas and is accountable for delivering outputs. This work provides important insights into the quality assurance of local imaging services in Leeds and is being used to develop radiology across Yorkshire related to MRI reporting for rectal cancer and monitoring CT colonography detection rate of cancer and polyps. It is directly benefiting patients in Leeds and beyond.