Dr Giles Dixon is a specialist Trainee in Respiratory Medicine and will be investigating how we can predict and track the course of Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD). ILD is a devastating condition which causes scarring on the lungs and results in 1% of all deaths in the UK. The aim is to understand how we can predict who will develop worsening (progressive) disease and how we can track the course of the disease over time. 

His interest in respiratory disease began at The University of Sheffield when he completed an undergraduate BMedSci at the MRC Centre for Developmental Biology, achieving a 1st Class Honours research degree investigating novel imaging techniques to visualise neutrophil biology in a zebrafish model of inflammation. Through his Academic Foundation Programme at the University of Bristol he worked at the Academic Respiratory Unit, investigating the role of pleural fluid procalcitonin and lymphocyte subset analysis in pleural effusions. 

Exploring the application of machine learning to characterise the driving mechanisms and predict the progression of fibrotic ILD 

During his GW4 Wellcome Trust Fellowship he will try to understand why some people diagnosed with ILD will develop progressive disease whereas others will not. He is interested in how we can use machine learning to analyse CT scans using a process called quantitative CT (qCT) to provide additional insight into the mechanisms behind the disease. 

Giles will collate a comprehensive anonymised database of patients with fibrosing ILD across the Southwest and collate lung function, blood test and novel imaging data and will then utilise a machine learning approach to understand which factors can help to predict prognosis. 

His retrospective work will inform the design of a prospective clinical study where he will monitor disease progression over time using qCT scanning and compare this to more traditional methods of monitoring the disease. He will also utilise novel imaging techniques including specific radiolabelled ligands and markers of endothelial health to understand the driving mechanisms of disease progression. 

It is hoped by building a greater understanding of disease mechanisms that we can provide a more personalised approach to patient care and aid the development of novel treatments.