Carl Philpott

I was appointed as an academic surgeon to the University of East Anglia in 2010, funded in part by the Anthony Long Trust. As Professor of Rhinology & Olfactology at UEA, I lead on a number of research projects related to chronic sinusitis and smell and taste disorders. In conjunction with my colleague Claire Hopkins, we lead the MACRO Programme Grant awarded by NIHR for £3.2 million, supported by a team of colleagues from UCL, University of Southampton and University of Oxford. The programme will involve a major trial of 600 patients with chronic sinusitis across 16 centres in the UK. Other research roles include being ENT Lead for the Eastern Local Clinical Research Network, Research Lead for the British Rhinological Society where I have helped to shape the national research priorities for nose and sinuses diseases and President of the British Otorhinolaryngology & Allied sciences Research Society.

I am a graduate of Leicester University Medical School and completed my basic surgical training in the University Hospitals of Leicester before undertaking a period of research into developing apparatus for testing the sense of smell, which culminated in my MD Thesis. My specialist training was completed in East Anglia, during which time I spent a year at the St Paul’s Sinus Centre in Vancouver, Canada learning advanced skills in endoscopic sinus surgery for inflammatory diseases of the nose and sinuses as well as tumours of the sinuses and anterior skull base. My main clinical interests include the medical and surgical treatment of chronic rhinosinusitis, allergic fungal rhinosinusitis and other sino-nasal disorders. I established the first dedicated ENT image guided sinus surgery facility in East Anglia and now run a regular sinus surgery course at UEA.

I have also spent time at the Dresden University Smell & Taste Clinic learning techniques for assessing and researching the sense of smell and am now the Director of the first British Smell & Taste Clinic and receive referrals from around the UK. This provides the opportunity to research the impact of olfactory disorders on sufferers and I am currently running a trial for a potential new treatment for a reduced sense of smell. Furthermore I have helped establish a patient led charity, Fifth Sense, which now has over 3000 members around the UK.