Digital and computational approaches for early detection of oral cancer

Ali Khurram is the Dean of the School of Clinical Dentistry at Sheffield, a Professor of Pathology, and an Honorary Consultant in Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology.

His expertise spans research, teaching and diagnostic pathology in oral, maxillofacial, and head and neck diseases. He is the founder and lead of the NEOPATH Research Group, where he works with a team of researchers and clinicians to advance the diagnosis and prognosis prediction of head and neck cancers.

One of his primary research interests is the application of Artificial Intelligence for early detection of dysplasia and cancer. He is actively involved in several national and international collaborative projects exploring novel digital biomarkers in oral dysplasia. 

Professor Khurram is passionate about raising awareness of head and neck cancers. He actively works with patient groups and charities and serves as a Trustee for The Swallows Head and Neck Cancer Charity.

Hanya Mahmood is a Senior Clinical Lecturer and Honorary Consultant Oral Surgeon at the School of Clinical Dentistry, University of Sheffield.

Her research focuses on the early detection and prognostic prediction of oral precancer, with a particular emphasis on integrating digital pathology, quantitative image analysis, and artificial intelligence to identify novel digital biomarkers predictive of malignant transformation. This work evolved from a prestigious NIHR-funded doctoral fellowship and PhD, which combined computational methods with clinical and histopathological data to improve risk stratification in oral potentially malignant disorders.

Dr Mahmood is an active member of the NEOPATH Head & Neck Cancer Research Group, collaborating across pathology, computer science, and clinical teams to develop and validate AI-driven pipelines for personalised risk prediction and decision support. Her research has been recognised nationally and internationally, earning several accolades including the BSODR President’s Prize (2025) for outstanding contributions to translational clinical research and the BSODR Senior Colgate Award (2023); UK’s most prestigious PhD-level award in Oral and Dental Research.