Meet the team

There are eight consultants working with chemotherapy patients.

Prof Peter Johnson
Peter Johnson is Professor of Medical Oncology at the University of Southampton and Director of the Cancer Research UK Clinical Centre in Southampton.

He trained in Medical Oncology at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London and was previously a consultant at St James's University Hospital in Leeds. He specialises in the treatment of lymphoma and carries out research into the use of antibodies to treat cancer by stimulating the immune system.

He is chairman of the National Cancer Research Institute Lymphoma group, a director of the International Extranodal Lymphoma Study Group and a member of several national trials committees for Cancer Research UK and the Medical Research Council.

Dr Christian Ottensmeier
Dr Ottensmeier has a  particular interest in treating patients with melanoma, a lethal type of skin cancer. He looks after patients from a local, regional and supraregional catchment area.

His other specialist interest is in cancers of the chest cavity, such as  lung cancer, mesothelioma and cancers of the thymus. He aims to offer his patients the chance to participate in a wide range of clinical trials, which test cutting edge treatments in his area of expertise.

Dr. Ottensmeier leads his own laboratory team of scientists, who investigate new ways to stimulate the immune system against cancer. This work builds on the expertise of his own team and that of internationally recognised immunologists in Southampton, based in the Cancer Sciences Division of the Medical School.

His particular interest is to develop and test DNA vaccines against cancer, and there are several such trials are already in progress. Dr Ottensmeier is funded by Cancer Research UK and leads the Southampton Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre, one of 10 of its kind in the UK.

Dr Tim Iveson
Dr Iveson was appointed to his current post in Southampton in 1995 after training in Medical Oncology at the Royal Marsden Hospital. He is based in Southampton and divides his practice equally between Southampton and Salisbury.

He specialises in the chemotherapy treatment of oesophagus, stomach, pancreas and colorectal cancer. He is an active participant in clinical trials and sits on the NRCI Colorectal Cancer Adjuvant Therapy Committee. He has published over 40 papers in peer reviewed journals.

Dr Peter Simmonds
Dr Nicholas Murray
Dr Ben Mead
Dr Charlotte Rees
Dr Clare Green

The Chemotherapy clinic is consultant-led – so these are the people you will meet when you first come in for treatment. They will devise your treatment plan.

Also in the Chemotherapy clinic team are:

• Specialist registrars
• Specialist nurses
• A nurse consultant
• A lecturer-practitioner nurse
• Two nurse practitioners
• A ward manager
• Staff nurses
• Administrative staff

The Chemotherapy clinic works closely with other departments around the hospital. You may be having several types of treatment within the Southampton Oncology Centre, including radiotherapy and surgery. Chemotherapy staff work closely with colleagues in these areas to co-ordinate your care.

Another important part of the Chemotherapy clinic is the Pharmacy| team.

These are the people who put your chemotherapy drugs together. It is a highly skilled task, which involves several stages of audit and checking, and it may take some time.