Pelican supported a research study that was undertaken by Miss Caoimhe Walsh, a Surgical Registrar based at Hampshire Hospitals. Miss Walsh presented the findings of this research at the Upper Gastrointestinal Congress in Belfast in October 2021, where she was awarded the UGI Congress Oral Presentation Prize for the best presentation in the Liver Free Paper Session.
The study was undertaken by the Basingstoke Hepatobiliary team in conjunction with the Haematology team in Basingstoke and the Biochemistry Department at Surrey University. Its specific focus was to understand the changes in blood clotting that occur before, during and immediately after liver surgery for bowel cancer secondaries.
Historically, doctors understood that patients undergoing liver surgery had a higher risk of bleeding after surgery and so no drugs were given to prevent clotting. This study changed that view as it demonstrated that this particular group of patients are at increased risk of clotting just before surgery, particularly if they have to undergo a lengthy, complex operation on the liver. The study findings therefore recommend that patients should be given drugs to prevent clotting pre-surgery to avoid the risk of major clots that can cause significant medical problems, for example if a clot moves to the heart or lungs.
Miss Walsh also presented the findings at a research meeting held in Pelican’s base in Basingstoke. The meeting included Rt. Hon. Professor the Lord Kakkar, an internationally-renowned expert on thrombosis (blood clotting), who emphasised the importance of the findings from this study.
