Dimitrios Koutoukidis

I am a dietitian and my research focuses on testing how behavioural science can change dietary intake and improve outcomes for patients with obesity-related diseases.

In 2017, I completed my PhD in Nutrition, Dietetics, and Behavioural Sciences at University College London funded by the UCL Grand Challenges. For my PhD, I adapted a theory-based behaviour change intervention for endometrial cancer survivors and piloted it in a randomised controlled trial. As a post-doc at UCL, I worked in two clinical trials of dietary and physical activity interventions in cancer survivors.

I have been leading a programme of work on weight loss for the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This works uses a variety of methodologies, including systematic reviews, meta-analyses, observational analyses, and clinical trials of low-energy diets.

In 2022, I was awarded an NIHR Advanced fellowship to examine the role of intentional weight loss before cancer surgery. This work currently focuses on assessing the feasibility of pre-operative diet-induced weight loss on post-operative complications in patients diagnosed with colorectal or endometrial cancer.