Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital is being developed by a number of world-leading experts in healthcare, research and industry. We provide expert commentary to regional, national and international broadcasters.
We welcome all requests from journalists. There is information below on some of our media spokespeople, with detail on their areas of expertise. Please contact us for any media enquiries, including arranging interviews, filming and photography: press@cambridgecancer.org.uk
Dr Sarah Burge, Director of Clinical Integration, University of Cambridge
Sarah is a senior leader in translational oncology and data-driven healthcare innovation. As Director of Clinical Integration at the University of Cambridge and Development Lead for the Integrated Cancer Medicine (ICM) Programme, she is at the forefront of a radical transformation in cancer care — where research and clinical delivery are seamlessly aligned. She plays a central role in the development of the Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital, helping to shape a new model of care where research and clinical practice are tightly interwoven.
With a background in biophysics, informatics and a PhD from the University of London, Dr. Burge brings over 15 years of experience working at the intersection of biomedical science, data integration, and healthcare delivery. Her work focuses on building systems and teams that can take innovations — particularly those in AI and data science — through to real-world clinical use.
At Cambridge, she has led projects ranging from the delivery of major COVID-19 research trials to the development of new data platforms for cancer diagnosis and prognosis. She is responsible for ensuring that scientific advances in integrated cancer medicine are supported by the necessary infrastructure, governance, and clinical engagement to reach patients effectively.
Areas of expertise: Research integration; AI and digital healthcare; academic and clinical collaboration.
Joanna Calder, Deputy Operations Manager for Cambridge Clinical Trails Centre and Lead for Clinical Operations, Cambridge University Hospitals
Joanna is the Lead for the Clinical Operations team at the Cambridge Cancer Trials Centre (CCTC) since 2024. She works closely with the research delivery teams at the CCTC to recruit patients to oncology clinical trials, providing excellent care as well as high-quality clinical trial data in order to facilitate transformational research.
Joanna has a background of research nursing in the Cambridge Cancer Trials Centre (CCTC) since 2013. She has particular experience in delivering Hepatobiliary Pancreatic (HPB), Aerodigestive and Head and Neck oncology clinical trials.
Additionally, she also works alongside teams delivering the Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital to help improve capacity and capabilities for trial delivery.
Area of expertise: Delivery of oncology clinical trials.
Fiona Carey, Co-Chair of the Patient Advisory Group, Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital
Fiona was first diagnosed with kidney cancer in 2001 at 40 years old, with fatigue and a cough the only symptoms. She was working at the time as a Deputy Director of Communications for the Open University. She had a radical nephrectomy and then two years later was diagnosed with a secondary tumour and had a section of her left lung removed at Papworth Hospital. In 2011, scans revealed further secondaries in her pancreas, and she had the complex and life-changing Whipple’s operation to remove the metastases and reconstruct her upper GI tract. After emergency surgery 24 hours later for a serious haemorrhage, she began a long and difficult recovery. Widespread abdominal adhesions have limited her mobility ever since. She returned to work again but had to retire in 2012.
During the last ten years, she’s had surgery, ablation and radiotherapy for seven or eight additional secondaries at several other tumour sites and has been poked and prodded quite a lot. She’s currently taking ‘potent’ drugs for the stuff that’s still hanging around.
She’s busy — playing wheelchair basketball, ‘Nannering’, swimming in lakes and rattling cages where they need rattling.
Fiona has been a Patient Representative for Addenbrooke’s Hospital since 2012. She’s been an Expert Advisor to a Parliamentary Body and chaired a national organisation promoting co-production. She’s spoken at numerous conferences at Westminster, NHS Expos, The King’s Fund and beyond. She believes strongly that when services are being designed or improved, it makes strategic and financial sense to have the people who use those services fully embedded in the project.
Areas of expertise: Co-production and why it matters in healthcare; over 24 years of living with cancer.
Elaine Chapman, Lead Advisory Nurse and Co-Production Leader for the Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital
Elaine began her cancer career working as an oncology nurse at Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH) in 2000, where she gained skills in giving chemotherapy. She was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer in 2006.
She has progressed across several roles at Addenbrooke’s Hospital and was appointed the hospital’s Lead Cancer Nurse in 2014, before taking on her current position as Lead Advisory Nurse for Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital. She has a Degree in Oncology Nursing and a MSc in Leadership for Health Service Improvement.
Elaine leads on co-production and engagement for the new Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital, and works alongside a group of patients and carers with lived experience of cancer — offering unique ideas and feedback on how it should be designed, built and run.
In 2016 Elaine discovered her breast cancer had metastasised (spread) to her brain, and underwent surgery to remove the tumour. Since her diagnosis, she has signed up to a number of research studies and has benefited from targeted treatment, which has enabled her to live a happy life.
Elaine combines her personal and professional experience of cancer to drive improvement in cancer, so care is both effective and patient centred. She has shared her experience at a regional and national level via conferences and direct involvement in research projects.
Areas of expertise: Oncology nursing; co-production and patient engagement; lived experience of cancer.
Professor Rebecca Fitzgerald, Director of the Early Cancer Institute, University of Cambridge
Rebecca is the recently appointed new Head of the Department of Oncology at the University of Cambridge. She will lead the Early Cancer Institute Research Clinic at Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital when it opens. She is currently Professor of Cancer Prevention and Director of the Early Cancer Institute at the University of Cambridge. She also serves as Honorary Consultant in Gastroenterology at Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH).
A passionate advocate for cancer prevention and early detection, Professor Fitzgerald has played a leading role in shaping cancer screening policy in the UK and Europe. Her innovative screening tool – the capsule sponge – has revolutionised the screening of Barrett’s Oessophagus, a precursor to oesophagael cancer. It is currently in several UK large scale trials to explore the possibility of its use as a national screening tool.
She studied Medicine at Cambridge University and gained her MD in 1997 following a period of research at Stanford University, California. Her postdoctoral training took place at the Department of Adult and Paediatric Gastroenterology, St Barts and The Royal London School of Medicine and Dentistry. She returned to Cambridge in 2001
She has a wealth of lecturing experience including radio broadcasts for BBC Radio 4 and ABC Radio Australia.
Areas of expertise: Cancer early detection; cancer screening; translational research; oesophageal cancer.
Dr Hugo Ford, Director of Cancer Services and Clinical Lead for Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital
Dr Ford is Director of Cancer Services at Cambridge University Hospitals and Clinical Lead for Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital. He qualified in medicine from the University of Cambridge and St Thomas' Hospital in London.
He undertook specialist training in Medical Oncology at the Royal Marsden Hospital and studied for his postgraduate (MD) degree at the Institute of Cancer Research for which he was awarded the Sir Lionel Whitby Medal.
His special interest is in gastrointestinal cancer and his current research mainly relates to the mechanisms of sensitivity and resistance to chemotherapy drugs in oesophageal and gastric cancers.
He is a member of the National Cancer Research Network Upper GI Clinical Studies group, and is the lead investigator for a number of multicentre clinical trials.
Areas of expertise: Gastrointestinal cancer (colorectal and oesophago-gastric); Lung cancer and Cancer of unknown primary site.
Professor Richard Gilbertson, Academic Lead for Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital
Richard completed his medical training and PhD in paediatric oncology in the UK before moving in 2000 to St Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the USA, where he served as Scientific and Comprehensive Cancer Centre Director, Executive Vice President and Lillian R Cannon Endowed Chair. In August 2015, he moved back home to England where he is Li Ka Shing Chair of Oncology, Senior Group Leader at the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute and Academic Lead for Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital. He is also currently Master of Gonville & Cauis College at the University of Cambridge.
He is a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS), Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences UK (FMedSci) and a member of the European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO).
His laboratory research is focused on understanding the link between normal development and the origins of cancer, particularly brain tumours in children.
Areas of expertise: Paediatric oncology; brain tumours in children; genomics.
Carrie Symington, Senior Improvement Manager for Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital
Carrie has worked on the Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital project since 2021, supporting the development of the model of care for the new hospital and making sure the developing building design meets the needs of the clinical and operational teams, and our patients.
Carrie is involved in multiple workstreams of the project from equipment planning, benefits realisation and the impact locally and regionally.
An operational manager by background, Carrie’s previous experience was at Royal Papworth Hospital both before, during and after the move to the Cambridge Biomedical Campus.
Area of expertise: Models of care; hospital design.