Inside Out: Exploring the Hidden Stories of Health and Healing

Direct-to-consumer health tests (DTCT) are sold online or in shops without a healthcare professional’s involvement. They offer empowerment and convenience but can also mislead or cause harm if inaccurate or their purpose and instructions for use are poorly explained. Our research explores the potential risks and benefits of these tests in the UK. By gathering evidence and perspectives from patients, professionals, regulators and policymakers, we aim to develop guidance for consumers and healthcare professionals to encourage the informed and safe use of DTCT.

I am a physiotherapist and I used to work at the Spinal Injuries Unit at Stoke Mandeville. How do you breathe when some your vital muscles were paralysed?  I’m applying my clinical experience to discover new ways for people with spinal cord injury to breathe more easily.  What happens when you breathe low levels of oxygen for short periods?  The body’s natural response is to increase the amount of air we breathe in, by taking deeper breaths, or by breathing faster.  Can people with spinal cord injury harness this natural response, combined with breathing exercises to breathe more easily?

What are cells? How do they work and what do they do in the healthy body? What happens when cells lose control? How do out of control cells cause cancer? My Pint of science will provide answers and also discuss some questions we still need answers to....