Chris McKinnon

Chris McKinnon is a Clinical Lecturer in Neurosurgery in Oxford with a specialist interest in Neuro-oncology Surgery. 

He undertook his pre-clinical training and intercalated BA in Neuroscience/Experimental Psychology at the University of Cambridge, prior to completion of the MBPhD Programme at University College London in 2015. His doctoral project examined the role of the ubiquitin-proteasome system in the pathogenesis of prion disorders and was awarded the Cordwainer's Prize for Best Thesis. He completed his Foundation training in the Thames Valley deanery in 2017, followed by a post-doctoral research fellowship at the University of Toronto investigating cellular mechanisms of neuroprotection in a model of deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's Disease.

Chris returned to Oxford for an Academic Clinical Fellowship in Neurosurgery in 2018 and was awarded the Barrow Foundation Fellowship by the Society of British Neurological Surgeons for 1st place rank in Neurosurgery National Selection applications. During his clinical academic training, he has completed the University of Oxford's Postgraduate Diploma in Health Research with Distinction. 

Chris has a clinical research interest in the development of novel intra-operative methodologies to improve extent of resection and minimise morbidity in brain tumour surgery. He was awarded an Oxford Cancer Clinical Post-doctoral Research Fellowship in 2022 to develop a mass spectrometry tissue classifier method for intra-operative diagnosis and differentiation of intrinsic brain tumours. 

In addition to his translational research, Chris is also Co-Chief Investigator of the NIHR-funded RECURRENT-GB trial together with Professor Puneet Plaha.