Professor Martin Birchall joined the Throat Cancer Foundation as a Trustee bringing exceptional medical standing, clinical authority and strategic weight to the board. His appointment reflects the Foundation’s determination to strengthen its leadership with figures of genuine distinction who can help shape its next phase of growth and ensure its work in prevention, awareness, early diagnosis and patient support is informed by the highest level of expertise. He is Professor of Laryngology at UCL and a Consultant in ENT Surgery at the Royal National ENT and Eastman Dental Hospital.
Professor Birchall is one of the most respected figures in modern throat and airway medicine. A specialist in disorders of the voice, swallowing and breathing, his clinical interests include pharyngeal pouch, airway disorders, cough and neck lumps. He is part of multidisciplinary voice, reflux and airway teams, including the national referral team for complex airway disorders, and has pioneered new ways of restoring function for patients with vocal cord weakness through laryngeal reinnervation.
Alongside his clinical work, Martin has built an international reputation for innovation and research. He has pioneered the use of transplantation, tissue engineering and soft robotics in surgery, co-led the team behind the world’s first stem cell based organ transplant in 2008, and helped lead the same breakthrough in a child in 2010. He was also the first otolaryngologist elected to the Academy of Medical Sciences, was awarded NIHR Senior Investigator status, and is patron of the National Association of Laryngectomee Clubs.
He brings to the Throat Cancer Foundation far more than prestige. He brings deep knowledge of the life-changing impact throat disease and throat cancer can have on speech, swallowing, breathing, confidence and identity. His presence strengthens the charity’s ability to speak with authority, deepen its links across the clinical community, and ensure its work remains grounded in both scientific credibility and the realities faced by patients and families.
