A WIRRAL doctor's outstanding contribution to patient care and innovation has earned her a prestigious honour.

Dr Anna Olsson-Brown - a registrar at Clatterbridge Cancer Centre - has been awarded the John Littler Medal 2018 in recognition of research that has helped patients.

Now in its second year, the award is bestowed in memory of Dr John Littler, a highly-regarded and much loved consultant oncologist at the centre, who passed away in 201

Dr Olsson-Brown received the medal in recognition of the research she is undertaking into the side effects of immunotherapy treatment.

Patients receiving the drugs can suffer from a variety of side effects which if not managed correctly can have profound effect on their lives.

Side effects can include inflammation of the bowel, liver and lungs as well as skin rashes, arthritis and hormone disturbances.

Dr Olsson-Brown's work is transforming the way these side effects are being assessed and managed, ultimately getting patients back into treatment more quickly.

She said: "It is a massive honour to receive this award.

"John was hugely respected not only for being an amazing oncologist but also a brilliant teacher, so I am thrilled to be given an award in his name."

Dr Olsson-Brown, 34, has been a registrar at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre for five years and is also a Research Fellow at The University of Liverpool, giving her a unique insight into all aspects of cancer treatment.

It is this combination of treating patients and research that earned her the nomination for the award.

The judging panel said: “We chose Anna Olsson-Brown as we felt that she demonstrated novelty in her research work that had been ongoing over time.

“The work had great impact on patients as the research is involved in reducing toxicities, patient safety and improved outcomes and high quality care.

“We felt that she was an excellent nominee and fitted the criteria to receive the medal with a good and substantial body of work and compassionate patient care.”

Dr Olsson-Brown said: "I think working in this area is an honour. The patients are amazing and being able to combine treating these brilliant people with research is great.

"The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre is putting a lot of effort into supporting registrars like myself who are doing research and that is really encouraging."

Other nominees were Shauna Nic A Baird, Sam Jones and Joachim Chan.