Professor of Clinical Trials and Neurodegenerative Disorders. Name: Suvankar PalCategory: StaffRole: Professor of Clinical Trials and Neurodegenerative DisordersTime active with Edinburgh Medical School: 2011 - present It is an enormous privilege to support people at a critical moment in their lives, providing a degree of certainty as they receive a life-changing diagnosis. The opportunity to take part in clinical trials helps shift the conversation from breaking bad news to one of hope. Suvankar Pal is an academic neurologist at the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic and UK Dementia Research Institute. He leads studies called clinical trials that help determine the best treatments for people with diseases affecting the brain and nervous system. He is co-lead of the MND-SMART trial at the Euan MacDonald Centre that aims to find treatments that slow, or stop, progress of motor neuron disease. He is also co-lead of the Scottish Motor Neuron Disease Register, which collects information from people who have the disease. Alongside this research work, Suvankar supports patients in his role as clinical lead for neurology at NHS Forth Valley and also contributes to teaching. He leads clinical neuroscience teaching for second year medical students. His students describe him as inspiring curiosity and confidence, as they learn about how changes in the brain can impact people’s lives. This article was published on 2026-03-12
