Professor Kristiana Gordon

My pleasure.

There's a big weight on these shoulders.

Yeah, so I'm not the first doctor in this, but I'm the first doctor in the UK that's had specific training in the lymphatic system.

So my predecessor, he was a dermatologist until he retired a couple of years ago, but he dedicated the majority of his career to looking after people living with lymphedema.

Our counterpart up in Derby, he's a palliative care doctor by training.

But, you know, looking after people living with cancer, he would see people struggling with lymphedema as well.

So that's how he fell into it.

Nobody goes to medical school, I don't think, saying I want to be a doctor looking after lymphedema.

All of us across the world, we're a really small community.

We've all fallen into it by accident.

I wanted to be a dermatologist and I was very lucky that I went to medical school at the same place that I work now.

I've been there 30 years now.

And one clinic a week in the dermatology department, one of the junior doctors had to take a turn and do the lymphedema clinic.

So when it was my turn, I had no idea I was going to enjoy it, but I loved it.

I really enjoyed the time I get to spend with these patients that have had a really difficult journey.

They've struggled to get a doctor to listen to them or understand what they're going through.

And I'm also very lucky that where I work, I have a great team around me.

So consultant colleagues, but lymphedema therapists as well, that are able to do this lymphedema treatment to help these patients.

And we get to follow the patients up over time and see how they benefit.

And so it's actually, from a selfish perspective, it's really rewarding.