Saman Warnakulasuriya

I am now Emeritus Professor at King’s College London. I have served King’s for 23 years and as Professor of Oral Medicine and Experimental Pathology since 2000. King’s College is ranked sixth in the UK for the quality and quantity of research activity. As a Senior researcher within the academia in the United Kingdom, I directed and supervised research teams/projects both in the field of epidemiology and laboratory research related to oral cancer and precancer for the past several decades. This long-standing experience enables me to develop and participate in a wide range of research activities in oral and head and neck disorders. I have previously published on the global epidemiology and risk factors for oral cancer, particularly risk factors among young subjects (under the age of 45 years) and on the role of emerging risk factors such as HPV. I have been the PI or a collaborator for several Oral Cancer Screening Programs conducted in Sri Lanka, India, The Sudan, Taiwan, Guam, and Japan. My study on oral cancer in young people in Southern England published in a series of manuscripts is the largest so far undertaken in Europe and is highly cited in the literature. My original findings on the carcinogenicity of areca nut were instrumental in IARC’s evaluation of areca nut as a class 1 carcinogen. My global networks in research (spreading across Japan, Taiwan, Sri Lanka, India, Sudan, Norway, Portugal and Spain) as eminent in my publication list has given me ample experience to supervise, assess and retain quality control in multi-centre research projects, be it in field surveys, clinical domains or in the laboratory. I am collaborating and working in UNIPRO, and I am able to guide global research teams through encouragement, enthusiasm and dedication.