2026 FDS research awards recipients

15 Jul 2026

The Faculty of Dental Surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons of England is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2026 research awards. This year’s pump-priming grants have been presented to a group of exceptional applicants, and we are proud to support their proposed research.

Congratulations to the eleven recipients of the pump-priming grants. We wish all awardees success in their research endeavours and future academic careers.

2026 FDS research award recipients

FDS-BISOM pump priming grant

  • Rachel Botrugno: Development of a Progressive Web App to aid the Diagnosis of Red and White Patches of the Oral Mucosa
  • Christina Tran: Distinguishing Oral Ulcers in Behçet’s Syndrome and Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis via PTBP1-Driven Perivascular NF-κB Inflammatory Signalling

FDS-BSPD pump-priming grant

  • Connie Hardwick: Early Disease, Lifelong Impact: Using Dental Caries to Identify Opportunities for Lifecourse Health Intervention

FDS pump-priming grant

  • Faith Campbell: Development and implementation of a national curriculum for paediatric caries management
  • K Julia Hurry: Exploring Treatment Beliefs and Co-Designing a Supportive Intervention for Children with Hypodontia
  • Afsha Musa: A multi-partner project to assess the oral health needs, and recommendations for accessing dental services of the Gypsy Roma Traveller (GRT) population in Cornwall, England
  • Jack Williams: Is methoxyflurane (Penthrox®) an effective and acceptable anxiolytic for use in invasive dental procedures from the perspectives of existing evidence, dental clinicians, and patients and the public?

FDS-BOS pump-priming grant

  • Joshua Kennedy: e-Learning resource on cleft lip +/- palate for undergraduate dental students in the United Kingdom
  • Daakshini Patel: Carbon Footprint of Orthodontic Patient Travel in NHS Highland

FDS-BAOS

  • Sunkanmi Oladeji Olaore: How can a digitally delivered, carer focused oral health support resource (QR-code accessed) improve the recognition and management of oral symptoms in oncology patients receiving end-of-life care across hospice settings?

FDS-BSODR pump-priming grant

  • Natalie Archer: Comparative Evaluation of Clinical Performance and Patient Perceptions of Traditional Packable Versus Nanohybrid INjectable COmposite Resin Restorations: A Randomised Controlled Trial (PINCOR)

Dr Jadbinder Seehra, Chair of the FDS Research Committee, commented "On behalf of the Research Committee, I would like to extend our warmest congratulations to all recipients of the 2026 Faculty of Dental Surgery Research Awards. The quality of submissions this year has been exceptionally high, reflecting the strength and diversity of research being undertaken across the dental specialty. We are delighted to support and celebrate your achievements and look forward to seeing the impact of your work on patient care and clinical education."

Thank you to the many colleagues for dedicating their time and expertise to reviewing all the applications. We also extend our gratitude to the following specialist societies for generously co-funding the pump-priming grants: British and Irish Society for Oral Medicine, British Society for Paediatric Dentistry, British Orthodontic Society, British Association of Oral Surgeons and British Society for Oral and Dental Research

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