Staff Profile

I have been a researcher in the Population Health Sciences Institute at Newcastle University since July 2019.

I am currently undergoing a PhD by publication as a staff member within the institute.

My research contributes to the Applied Cancer Therapeutics and Outcomes theme. My research interests pertain to self-management, quality of life, and supportive care needs.

Qualifications

MSc Health Psychology, Northumbria University

BSc (hons) Psychology, Northumbria University

Previous Positions

2018 - 2019 Senior Research Assistant, Northumbria University

I am currently working across two projects: (1) the Ways Ahead project, looking at improving support for people living with a brain tumour; (2) theme six of the Blood and Transplant Research Unit (BTRU) in organ donation and transplantation at Cambridge and Newcastle Universities, assessing the experiences and outcomes of solid organ transplant recipients.

In addition to the above, my research involvement spans a broad range of cancer survivorship and early diagnosis, including: post-traumatic growth in cancer survivors, unmet needs in advanced cancer, cervical screening attendance, bowel symptoms in cancer survivors, and physical activity in childhood cancer survivors.

I have supervised two Masters in Public Health students and two student interns on work related to the Ways Ahead project.

• Articles

  • Rimmer B, Finch T, Balla M, Dutton L, Williams S, Lewis J, Gallagher P, Burns R, Araújo-Soares V, Menger F, Sharp L, Ways Ahead study team. Understanding supported self-management for people living with a lower-grade glioma: Implementation considerations through the lens of normalisation process theory. Health Expectations 2024, 27(3), e14073.
  • Rimmer B, Brown MC, Sotire T, Beyer F, Bolnykh I, Balla M, Richmond C, Dutton L, Williams S, Araújo-Soares V, Finch T, Gallagher P, Lewis J, Burns R, Sharp L. Characteristics and components of self-management interventions for improving quality of life in cancer survivors: a systematic review. Cancers 2024, 16(1), 14.
  • Rimmer B, Balla M, Dutton L, Williams S, Araújo-Soares V, Gallagher P, Finch T, Lewis J, Burns R, Menger F, Sharp L. Barriers and facilitators to self-management in people living with a lower-grade glioma. Journal of Cancer Survivorship 2024, Epub ahead of print.
  • Rimmer B, Jenkins R, Russell S, Craig D, Sharp L, Exley C. Assessing quality of life in solid organ transplant recipients: A systematic review of the development, content, and quality of available condition- and transplant-specific patient-reported outcome measures. Transplantation Reviews 2024, 38(2), 100836.
  • Rimmer B, Balla M, Dutton L, Williams S, Lewis J, Gallagher P, Finch T, Burns R, Araújo-Soares V, Menger F, Sharp L, the Ways Ahead Study Team. “It changes everything”: Understanding how people experience the impact of living with a lower-grade glioma. Neuro-Oncology Practice 2024, 11(3), 255–265.
  • Rimmer B, Balla M, Dutton L, Burns R, Araújo-Soares V, Finch T, Lewis J, Gallagher P, Williams S, Menger F, Sharp L. "It's a delicate dance": How informal caregivers experience the role and responsibilities of supporting someone living with a lower-grade glioma. Neuro-Oncology Practice 2025, 12(2), 340-350.
  • Murrell A, Rimmer B, Dutton L, Lewis J, Burns R, Gallagher P, Williams S, Araújo-Soares V, Finch T, Sharp L. The nature and quality of support from informal networks for informal caregivers of low-grade glioma patients: a qualitative analysis within the Ways Ahead study. European Journal of Cancer Care 2023, 2023, 4149412.
  • Rimmer B, Balla M, Dutton L, Lewis J, Brown MC, Burns R, Gallagher P, Williams S, Araújo-Soares V, Finch T, Menger F, Sharp L. Identifying and understanding how people living with a lower-grade glioma engage in self-management. Journal of Cancer Survivorship 2024, 18, 1837–1850.
  • Rimmer B, Bolnykh I, Dutton L, Lewis J, Burns R, Gallagher P, Williams S, Araújo-Soares V, Menger F, Sharp L. Health-related quality of life in adults with low-grade gliomas: a systematic review. Quality of Life Research 2023, 32, 625-651.
  • Walker H, Rimmer B, Dutton L, Finch T, Gallagher P, Lewis J, Burns R, Araújo-Soares V, Williams S, Sharp L. Experiences of work for people living with a grade 2/3 oligodendroglioma: a qualitative analysis within the Ways Ahead study. BMJ Open 2023, 13(9), e074151.
  • Rimmer B, Balla M, Dutton L, Lewis J, Burns R, Gallagher P, Williams S, Araújo-Soares V, Finch T, Sharp L. 'A constant black cloud': The emotional impact of informal caregiving for someone with a lower-grade glioma. Qualitative Health Research 2023, 34(3), 227-238.
  • O'Donovan B, Mooney T, Rimmer B, Fitzpatrick P, Flannelly G, Doherty L, Russell N, Martin CM, O'Leary JJ, Sharp L, O'Connor M. Trust and cancer screening: Effects of a screening controversy on women's perceptions of cervical cancer screening. Preventive Medicine Reports 2022, 25, 101684.
  • Rimmer B, Crowe L, Todd A, Sharp L. Assessing unmet needs in advanced cancer patients: a systematic review of the development, content, and quality of available instruments. Journal of Cancer Survivorship 2022, 16, 960-975.
  • Menger F, Mohamed Halim NA, Rimmer B, Sharp L. Post-traumatic growth after cancer: a scoping review of qualitative research. Supportive Care in Cancer 2021, 29, 7013-7027.
  • Rimmer B, Sharp L. Implementation of Self‑Management Interventions in Cancer Survivors: Why Are We Not There Yet?. Journal of Cancer Education 2021, 36, 1355-1358.
  • O'Donovan B, Mooney T, Rimmer B, Fitzpatrick P, Flannelly G, Doherty L, Martin C, O'Leary J, O'Connor M, Sharp L. Advancing understanding of influences on cervical screening (non)-participation among younger and older women: A qualitative study using the theoretical domains framework and the COM-B model. Health Expectations 2021, 24(6), 2023-2035.
  • Rimmer B, Dutton E, Lewis J, Burns R, Gallagher P, Williams S, Araújo Soares V, Finch T, Sharp L. Ways Ahead: Developing a supported self-management programme for people living with low- and intermediate-grade gliomas. A protocol for a multi-method study. BMJ Open 2020, 10(7), e041465.

• Review

  • Jenkins R, Rimmer B, Marson L, Fisher AJ, Sharp L, Exley C. Measuring patient-reported experience of solid organ transplantation healthcare: A scoping review of condition- and transplant-specific measures. Transplantation Reviews 2024, 38(4), 100872.