Biophotonics Research Unit

• Introduction • What we do? • Contact Us • Our Staff • Prizes and Awards • Publications • Funding • Laser Safety Course • Links

Introduction

Biophotonics – ‘the use of light to measure biological changes that relate to disease’

The Biophotonics Research Unit within Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has international recognition for its work in pioneering techniques for the detection and diagnosis of early disease, to enable more successful treatment outcomes. This includes cancers, pre-cancers and local & systemic infections. We have strong links with numerous clinical, academic and commercial partners. The core programme of work has been recognised as ‘Strong’ (the highest rating) by the Department of Health since 2002.

The Unit’s goals are to pioneer the field of novel optical diagnostics within the clinical environment. This involves local, national and international research collaborations. The team is multidisciplinary in nature; made up of scientists (physicists, chemists and biologists) and clinicians (mainly surgeons). We lead research into vibrational spectroscopy (Raman and FT-IR), diagnostics for in vivo and in vitro discrimination of early cancers; degenerative diseases and local and systemic disease studies in body fluids. Other work by the group includes mid-IR hyperspectral imaging of tissues for pathological diagnostics and biochemical analysis; optical coherence tomography for real-time surgical targeting of disease and biopsy selection; photodynamic therapy for early cancers and dysplasia; and volatile analysis techniques for detection of infections.

What is optical or photo diagnostics?

What does the Biophotonics Unit do?

Clinical needs being explored:


							• Novel rapid diagnostics for early cancers, staging of cancers, identification of tumour margins and lymph node metastatic identification.
							• Novel cancer therapeutics: Photodynamic therapy has been pioneered at Gloucester in the GI-tract, especially for use in the treatment of Barrett's dysplasia in the oesophagus.
							• Identification/detection of local and systemic infection, acquired infection.

Novel Cancer Therapeutics

Technologies (under development):

• Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy for rapid infection diagnosis.

• FT-IR spectroscopy

• Volatile analysis for rapid infection detection

• Breathatron

• Mass spectroscopy (at Cranfield University)

Contact Us

Dr Nick Stone
Biophotonics Research Unit
Leadon House
Gloucestershire Royal Hospital
Great Western Road
Gloucester
GL1 3NN

n.stone@medical-research-centre.com

Our Staff

Dr Nicholas Stone, Head of Biophotonics Research Unit, Consultant Clinical Scientist and Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer Cranfield Health

Dr Catherine Kendall, Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellow Principal Clinical Scientist, Honorary Clinical Lecturer Cranfield Health

Dr Jacob Filik, Post-doctoral Research Fellow

Mrs Allison Bates, Departmental Secretary

PhD Students

Mr John Archer, Lasers for Life Fellowship

Miss Rebecca Baker

Miss Jaspreet Babrah, Robert Dalton Research Fellow

Mr Florian Bazant-Hegemark

Mr Martin Isabelle

Miss Joanne Hutchings, IPEM Fellowship

Miss Neus Planas

Miss Martina Sattlecker

Doctorate of Medicine (DM) Students

Mr Jon Aning, Surgical Research Fellow

Mrs Consuelo Hart Prieto, Surgical Research Fellow

Major Linda Orr, Surgical Research Fellow

Mr Lee Humphreys, Surgical Research Fellow

MSc Students

Mr Napoleon Charaklias MSc / Surgical Fellow

Collaborators from within the Trust


Prof Hugh Barr: -	Consultant GI Surgeon
Prof Neil Shepherd: -	Consultant GI Registry Pathologist
Dr Sally Pearson: -	Director
Dr Rob Orme: -	ITU Consultant
Dr Keith McCarthy: -	Consultant Histopathologist
Dr Jeremy Uff: -	Consultant Histopathologist
Dr Jonathan Christie-Brown: -	Consultant Histopathologist
Dr Philippa Moore: -	Consultant Microbiologist
Mr Charlie Chan: -	Consultant Breast Surgeon
Mr Alastair Sammon; -	Consultant Breast Surgeon
Miss Claire Fowler: -	Consultant Endo Surgeon
Mr Mike Read: -	Head / Consultant O&G
Dr Adam Rye: -	Consultant Haematologist
Dr Richard Lush: -	Consultant Haematologist
Mr Tim Cook: -	Consultant Surgeon
Mr Alastair Ritchie: -	Consultant Urologist
Mr Hugh Gilbert: -	Consultant Urologist
Prof Jonathan Brown: -	Consultant Physician
Mr Graeme MacKintosh: -	Consultant Ophthalmologist
Prof Andrew McNaught: -	Consultant Ophthalmologist
Mr Mike Thomas: -	Consultant ENT Surgeon
Julie Hapeshi: -	Research Governance & Ethics
Chris Foy: -	Statistician
Mark Walker: -	RDSU
Zoe Coombe, Maxine Taylor: -	NCRN, 3 Counties Cancer
Mrs Joanne Motte: -	Histopathology Technician
Mrs Jackie Rachel: -	Histopathology Technician
Mrs Christine	Histopathology Technician

Degrees and Prizes and Awarded

PhD (Cranfield University)

• Dr Anthony Dix

• Dr Nicholas Stone

• Dr Catherine Kendall, ‘A Study of Raman Spectroscopy for the early detection and classification of malignancy in oesophageal Tissue’ 2002

• Dr Janelle-Reyes Goddard, ‘The use of surface enhanced Raman scattering to differentiate between a human tear film model with and without herpes simplex virus.’ 2004

Doctorate of Medicine (DM Cranfield University)

• Miss Jenny Smith,’ Raman spectroscopy in the assessment of axillary lymph nodes in breast cancer’ 2006

• Mrs Geeta Shetty, ‘Applications of Raman Spectroscopy to the Carcinogenesis of Oesophagus’ 2006

MD (Bristol University)

• Mr Paul Crow, ‘The use of Raman spectroscopy to differentiate between benign and malignant pathologies of the bladder and prostate in vitro.’ 2003

MSc by Research (MRes Cranfield University)

• Mr Kaustuv Das, ‘The development of optical spectroscopy in the management of hyperparathyroidism’ 2006

• Mr Krishnan Subramanian, ‘Optical spectroscopy in breast diseases’ 2006

• Dr Kamran Naraghi

Prizes
2008	Joanne Hutchings	Barrett’s Oesophagus Patients Forum (Probe) Poster prize.
2008	Joanne Hutchings	Barrett’s Oesophagus Patients Forum (Probe) Lay Presentation Prize.
2008	John Archer	International Conference on Raman Spectroscopy Bursary Award
2007	Jaspreet Babrah	Cranfield Health Best Collaborative Project ‘Cancer diagnostics using Infrared Spectroscopy’ Babrah J, Isabelle M, Baker R, Aning J, Stone N.
2007	Joanne Hutchings	British Medical Laser Association Scientific Award ‘Raman spectroscopy for in-vivo oesophageal cancer diagnosis.’ Hutchings J, Barr H, Kendall C, Stone N.
2007	Martin Isabelle	Infrared and Raman Discussion group (IRDG) Ward Martin & Willis Student Poster Prize ‘Raman and Infrared Spectroscopy for lymph node staging.’ Isabelle M Stone N Barr H, Rogers K
2007	Joanne Hutchings	BMLA Scientific Research Presentation Prize
2007	Florian Bazant-Hegemark	British Society of gastroenterology Oesophageal section fellowship (Boston).
2007	Florian Bazant-Hegemark	Barrett’s Oesophagus patients forum Communication Prize
2006	Joanne Hutchings	3 Counties Cancer Network Scientific Poster Prize
2006	Joanne Hutchings	Three Counties Cancer Research Network/NCRN Conference Scientific Poster Prize ‘Can Raman Spectroscopy be used to predict the prognosis of cancer in patients with high-grade dysplasia?’ Hutchings J, Dwerryhouse S, Stone N, Kendall C, Barr H.
2006	Kaustuv Das	Optical Spectroscopy of parathyroid pathology in hyperparathyroidism. Das K, Stone N, Kendall C, Fowler C, Christie-Brown J. (South West Surgeons Meeting Prize)
2006	Nicholas Stone	Spiers Prize by the Institute of Physics in Medicine.
2006	Florian Bazant-Hegemark	British Medical Association Presentation Prize
2005	Rebecca Baker	BMLA Scientific Presentation Prize
2005	Benjamin Bird	Rank Opto-electronics Prize. ‘A combined infrared and Raman study of axillary lymph nodes in breast cancer.’ Bird B, George MW, Wang X-Y, Garibaldi JM, Stone N, Smith J, Barr H.
2004	Jenny Smith	ASGBI Best Research Poster ‘Optical biopsy is highly specific for positive lymph node classification in breast cancer’
2004	Geeta Shetty	Research Prize SW Gastroenterological Group British Society of Gastroenterology. ‘Barrett’s Oesophagus Raman Spectroscopy the Solution to Subjectivity?’ Shetty G, Kendall C, Warren B, Geboes K, Shepherd N, Stone N, Barr H.
2004	Jenny Smith	ASGBI Prize for Breast Research 2004 ‘Raman Spectroscopy is a sensitive, specific and rapid technique for the assessment of lymph node metastases in breast carcinoma.’ Smith J, Kendall C, Christie-Brown J, Chan C., Sammon A, Barr H, Stone N.
2003	Major Linda Orr	David Robinson Fellowship Otolaryngology ‘Raman spectroscopy for detection of early laryngeal cancer’
2003	Catherine Kendall	Angela Newing Award for Outstanding Research
2003	Catherine Kendall	Joint International Laser Conference Young Scientist Award
2002	Nicholas Stone	Spier’s Prize Institute of Physics in Engineering and Medicine
2002	Nicholas Stone	Angela Newing Award for Outstanding Research
2000	Catherine Kendall	BMLA Trainee Award
1999	Catherine Kendall	Bursary to attend 4th Mayneord Phillips Summer School

Publications

Over 100 peer reviewed papers, book chapters and international proceedings.

Funding

Grants: total of around £5 million.


							• 2007-2009 Dr N Stone, Dti OCT at 1 Micron: Improved ContRast for Optimal detection of Neoplasm (OMICRON)
							• 2007-2012, NIHR, Career Scientist Award Dr N Stone, Advancing early cancer diagnostics utilising vibrational spectroscopy
							• 2006-2007, Cobalt Appeal Fund, Research Bursary
							• 2006-2009, CPMS Pump Prime Fund, PhD Studentship Vascular OCT
							• 2006-2007, Cobalt Appeal Fund, Research Bursary Breast Cancer
							• 2005-2010, Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellowship Dr C Kendall
							• 2005-2008, IPEM Fellowship Miss J Hutchings
							• 2005-2008, LINC, Robert Dalton Research Fellowship (PhD) Leukaemia
							• 2005-2008, CPMS Pump Prime Fund, PhD Studentship Lymph nodes
							• 2004-2007, CPMS Pump Prime Fund, PhD Studentship Cervical OCT
							• 2005-2008, Dti Nano-photonics SERS applications for clinical diagnosis, (NAPSAC)

Lead two national clinical trials (within the Cancer Research Network Portfolio)

Laser Safety Course

A laser safety course covering the MHRA Core of Knowledge is run twice a year (normally in May and November).

The next course will take place on Thursday 20th November 2008 at Cheltenham General Hospital