Meet the Team
Professor David Jones
- Professor of Liver Immunology
- Newcastle University - Translational and Clinical Research Insitute
- Email: david.jones@ncl.ac.uk
- Telephone: 0191 208 7572
- Professor Jones is the Chief Investigator on the OPERA trial and has an international reputation for his work in autoimmune liver disease and leads the UK-PBC research consortium.
Ciara Kennedy
- Trial Manager
- Newcastle Clinical Trials Unit
- Email: ciara.kennedy@ncl.ac.uk
- Trial Managers will lead overall day to day management performing monitoring, safety reporting and reports to the Trial Management Group Trial Oversight Committees and regulatory bodies.
Christopher Weetman
- Data Manager
- Newcastle Clinical Trials Unit
- Email: christopher.weetman@ncl.ac.uk
- The Database Manager will manage the data entered and raise and deal with data queries. Alongside efficient data cleaning and complete database lock and final data download for analysis.
Alison Liddle
- Trial Administrator
- Newcastle Clinical Trials Unit
- Email: alison.liddle@ncl.ac.uk
- The Clinical Trial Administrator provides high level administrative support to the NCTU team and the site teams. The CTA also ensures that the trials are conducted to GCP requirements.
Helen Hancock
- Director of Newcastle Clinical Trials Unit
- Newcastle Clinical Trials Unit
- Email: helen.hancock@ncl.ac.uk
- The Director is responsible for the academic, financial, administrative and business management of NCTU
Alastair Burt
- Professor of Precision and Molecular Pathology
- Newcastle University - Translational and Clinical Research Institute
- Email: alastair.burt@ncl.ac.uk
- Alastair Burt is the Lead Pathologist for OPERA. He is an internationally renowned hepatopathologist and editor in chief of the main textbook in his field, MacSween’s Pathology of the Liver.
Cynthia Levy
- Professor of Medicine Arthur Hertz Chair in Liver Diseases
- University of Miami Health System
- Email: clevy@med.miami.edu
- Chair for the OPERA Independent Data Monitoring Committee Dr. Cynthia Levy is a gastroenterologist in Miami, Florida.
James Wason
- Professor of Biostatistics
- Newcastle University - Population Health Sciences Institute
- Email: james.wason@ncl.ac.uk
- Co-applicant. James will help apply a statistical analysis technique that will improve the chance the trial reaches the right conclusion about whether the intervention is effective.
Dr Palak Trivedi
- Associate Professor and Honorary Consultant Hepatologist
- Birmingham University - Institute of Immunology and Immunotherapy
- Email: p.j.trivedi@bham.ac.uk
- Dr. Trivedi is a Consultant Hepatologist specialising in immune-mediated and chronic cholestatic liver disease, primary sclerosing cholangitis(PSC) and primary biliary cholangitis(PBC).
Dr George Mells
- Consultant Hepatologist at Addenbrooke’s Hospital
- Cambridge Liver Unit
- Email: gfm26@medschl.cam.ac.uk
- Dr George Mells is a Consultant Hepatologist at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, and a theme lead for UK-PBC.
Emma Burton
- Project Manager
- Newcastle University - Translational and Clinical Research Institute
- Email: emma.burton@ncl.ac.uk
- The Project Manager supports translational research projects within the Faculty of Medical Sciences.
Laura Frisby
- Regulatory Compliance Officer
- Newcastle Joint Research Office
- Email: laura.frisby2@nhs.net
- Laura Frisby is the sponsor representative
