Emma Underwood
Chair
Dr Rhian Noble-Jones
Immediate Past Chair
Dr Kristiana Gordon
BLSSC Member
Dr Ambreen Chohan
BLSSC Member
Rebecca Elwell
Conference Organiser
Garry Cooper-Stanton
BLSSC Member
Fran Campbell
BLSSC Member
Catherine Mitchell
BLSSC Member
Catherine O'Leary
BLSSC Member
Patryk Gawrysiak
BLSSC Honorary Member
View Our Bios
Our Purpose And Aim?
The British Lymphology Society Scientific Committee (BLSSC) aim is to encourage and develop the appreciation, engagement, and development of research activity within the BLS membership. This towards improving the evidence base surrounding lymphoedema, but also its treatment and management, to lead to improved patient outcomes and the care they receive. This work is led by the BLSSC that consists of up to 10 BLS members, which comprises of nine full members and one honorary member who undertake the following:
BLSCC Activities |
BLSSC Details |
Meetings |
Our activities and meetings are spread out across the year with most of the work undertaken online. This is to accommodate the variety of essential work that the BLSSC undertakes. |
Queries |
Coordinate responses to enquiries from BLS members and others regarding the evidence base, and to act as expert reviewers to external agencies (such as NICE, NHS England). |
Research |
The BLSCC supports the top 10 research priorities for the treatment and management of lymphoedema in the UK, which also extends to supporting the development of research skills for existing BLS members. This aligns to the funding that is provided via the lymphoedema research & development grant. |
Lymphoedema Research & Development Grant |
Encourage, promote, and assess applications for the Lymphoedema Research & Development Grant. This is towards making recommendations to the BLS Committee about which projects receive funding, and to receive regular reports about those who are being supported.
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Conference Abstracts |
Administer and peer review abstract submissions for inclusion at the BLS conference as an oral or poster presentations. Judge the abstract presentations at the conference to recommend the awards for best overall poster and oral presentations and best novice poster and oral presentations. |
Publication |
We promote BLS members’ research activities in News & Views through our regular features “Spotlight on Research” and “Spotlight on Publications”, as well as through other articles submitted by BLS members. News & Views is also an education platform for the membership, with articles about aspects of research: Click Here to View |
Wider Work |
The BLSSC is also involved in supporting other pieces of work undertaken within BLS. This includes the development of position documents to support the patients and practitioners. |
BLS Committee |
Our Chair represents the SC on the BLS Committee as a co-opted member. |
Get Involved
Each year we seek new members to join our innovative and forward thinking BLSSCC voluntary group. You would join our existing members on the BLSSC who represent a mix of skills and experience including doctors, therapists, academics, and researchers. All have a keen interest in lymphoedema research, and have experience in writing for publication, of oral and poster presentation, and may also have a higher degree and research experience. To support BLS members who are undertaking research as part of a master’s degree, our honorary role offers an opportunity for novice researchers to join the BLSSC, by providing mentorship to develop their skills further. Potential applicants are welcome to discuss their interest by contacting science@thebls.com, coupled with reading the BLSSC Terms of Reference. This would lead to a short application being completed accompanied by a covering letter that is reviewed by the committee.
BLSSC & BJCN Case Report Competition
The BLS Scientific Committee (BLSSC) is delighted to announce that we are repeating the BLSSC & BJCN Case Report Competition – “Write a Case Report”.
One aim of the BLSSC is to encourage development of research interest and skills amongst the BLS membership. This year, we are focusing on developing the skills necessary to write and publish case reports (also known as case studies).
Each year, many members submit abstracts for case reports to the BLS Conference. The BLSSC believes there is an appetite amongst the membership to share stories about their clinical cases. Thus, the Committee wishes to provide opportunities to further develop and formalise this by helping practitioners to prepare case studies for publication.
We know that lymphoedema is underrepresented in research, and we need your help in building a repository of sound case reports to support the need for larger research projects.
The Lymphoedema Research Development Grant
The Lymphoedema Research Development Grant (LRDG) has been renamed to reflect a broader range of research development opportunities that it can support. It offers awards of up to £10,000 to BLS members to develop their skills in research and evidence implementation and further research into lymphoedema in the UK.
Applications open: 8th January 2024
Deadline for submissions: 25th March 2024
Further details and guidelines for submission can be found here.
Supporting Research – How to Obtain Publications About Lymphoedema?
You can keep informed about all the latest publications on lymphoedema by setting up an automatic update, or by accessing your organisations resources
Automatic Updates – there are two ways to setup these updates:
1. Pub Med – Please use the following link for detailed instructions on how to set this up
2. Google Scholar – 1) Go to the Google Scholar Home Page, 2) Click on the Alerts icon at the top of the page, 3) Click on Create Alert, 4) Type in the search term, email address, and select the number of results.
Either of these methods will send you an email with details of recent publications.
Open Athens – You may wish to setup an account by clicking here for those working in the NHS. Alternatively, you may wish to speak to your library service, or equivalent about gaining access to Open Athens and the available databases.
How To Obtain Full-Text Articles?
Certain articles are available online, such as open access, which will enable you to read them online, and possibly download them. Alternatively, you may wish to speak to your library service, or equivalent about accessing articles, or use the following link for more information, please click here.