I graduated from Lancaster University in 2014, with a BSc in Mathematics. Following this, I worked for EDF Energy as a Nuclear Safety Engineer, with a focus on Reactor Physics, at Hartlepool Power Station.
Data Science is a field that I’ve been interested in for some time, and the opportunity within the CDT programme to develop the necessary skills, as part of a cohort of students is something that particularly appealed to me.
My spare time is spent watching my hometown football club Hartlepool United, attending live music or comedy gigs or taking part in the occasional pub quiz.
PhD Title
Improving Surgical Treatment of Epilepsy using Brain Network Analysis
Epilepsy is a neurological disorder, affecting approximately 1% of the population, and is typically characterised by abnormal brain activity together with recurrent seizures. Although anti-epileptic medication is widely used, it is not effective in up to 30% of patients. Surgery is therefore considered as an alternative treatment to remove the part of the brain believed to be causing the seizures. However, only 1 in 2 patients achieve long-term seizure freedom, and the reasons behind this are not well understood.
My research project aims to improve the understanding of why some patients achieve seizure freedom post-surgery, whereas others do not. By modelling patients’ brains as graphs comprising of regions (nodes) and tracts (edges), network analysis may provide insight into the effect of the removal of specific brain regions, and its relation to surgical outcome.
