Sam Chamberlain MA MB/BChir PhD - personal statementI am a psychiatric doctor based at the Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge UK and at Fulbourn Hospital, Cambridge UK. I also collaborate with other institutions, such as the National Treatment Service for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) (England and Wales) UK, and the University of Minnesota Impulse Control Disorders Clinic in the USA.
My research uses a variety of objective approaches, including cognitive assessment and neuroimaging, to explore the brain correlates of psychiatric conditions and the mechanisms by which medications (and therapies) exert their beneficial effects. My focus has been on impulse control disorders including compulsive hair-pulling, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), pathological gambling, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). I also have an interest in Alzheimer's Disease and in mood disorders. Collectively, these conditions cause considerable suffering and are often overlooked.
Much of my work involves identifying and evaluating biomarkers grounded in the neurosciences. Though this area of research is in its infancy, biomarkers have considerable potential. For example, they can be used to help select promising compounds in initial cost-minimal proof-of-concept trials, such as identification of compounds with anti-impulsive or anti-depressive properties. Biomarkers and associated algorithms can also be used to predict the course of disease progression, and therefore can allow clinicians and companies to 'enrich' samples by enrolling patients most likely to benefit from a particular intervention. Longer-term, these types of markers and algorithms may help society to direct resources towards early intervention. By improving our understanding of the link between the brain and behavior not only in disease, but also in health, we can better understand why some people 'at risk' of a disease like OCD never develop debilitating symptoms (resilience factors).