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29 August 2025
Funding from the King's Health Partners (KHP) Centre for Translational Medicine has given Dr Manpreet Sagoo protected research time, supporting her ambition of developing an integrated clinical and genetic stratification tool to predict those at risk of severe disease in adults with psoriasis.
Please describe your research specialism
I am a dermatology registrar at the St John’s Institute of Dermatology, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, and a KHP Centre for Translational Medicine (CTM) Pre-doctoral Clinical Research Excellence Fellow, supervised by Prof Catherine Smith, Prof Michael Simpson, and Dr Satveer Mahil. My research focuses on harnessing precision medicine to improve psoriasis care.
Psoriasis is a common, multi-factorial, immune-mediated skin condition that affects one in 50 people in the UK and causes red, scaly patches on the skin. About one in three people with psoriasis develop severe psoriasis, which is associated with increased morbidity and poorer health outcomes. Although there is no cure, new treatments (“biologics”) for severe psoriasis can completely clear the skin. The current treatment paradigm is, however, reactive, with no routinely used prognostic biomarkers to identify those at greatest risk of developing severe disease.
My research project aims to develop a novel integrated risk stratification tool, combining genetic, clinical and lifestyle risk factors, using a large UK population-based dataset (UK Biobank) to predict those at risk of severe psoriasis. This tool could enable early detection, early intervention and precision treatment to address significant unmet clinical needs in the psoriasis population.
How has funding from the KHP CTM helped your research?
I am extremely fortunate to have received funding through the KHP CTM Pre-doctoral Clinical Research Excellence Fellowship. This opportunity has been a pivotal stepping stone in my clinical academic career and has enabled me to develop funding applications for a doctoral fellowship.
During this fellowship, I have developed a preliminary psoriasis severity prediction model, integrating clinical and genetic factors. Through this work, I have gained new skills in bioinformatics, statistical analyses and prediction modelling techniques using R language and large-scale data sets.
I have attended national and international training courses and conferences, which have broadened my technical skillset and professional networks. A particular highlight has been working closely with the Psoriasis Association (the UK’s leading charity for people with psoriasis) through national public engagement initiatives, to involve people with psoriasis and the public in shaping my research at every stage.
Ultimately, this would not have been possible without the generous support from KHP CTM, and I am incredibly grateful!
How does your research have the potential to benefit patients?
The goal of my research is to enable equitable and inclusive access to the right treatment at the right time for people with psoriasis, across diverse populations, to move towards personalised and proactive psoriasis care. A psoriasis severity risk stratification tool has the potential to address health inequalities through: a) reducing unconscious bias using a standardised tool b) democratising access to care across diverse populations and geographical regions and c) enabling efficient resource allocation based on clinical need.
How does working within KHP benefit your research?
Working within the KHP ecosystem has created unique opportunities for my research. It has helped to foster new collaborations, synergise diverse expertise across faculties, and enabled access to valuable datasets. It is an inspiring multi-disciplinary environment that brings together clinical academics, scientists, healthcare professionals, engineers, public engagement experts and people with lived experiences.
I feel incredibly lucky to be a part of the KHP community, where innovation drives impact to improve the lives of our patients.
