Professor Lesley Colvin
Chair of Pain Medicine
Population Health and Genomics, School of Medicine
Contact
Biography
- Professor of Pain Medicine, University of Dundee/ Consultant in Anaesthesia & Pain Medicine, NHS Tayside
- Deputy Associate Dean (Research), School of Medicine, University of Dundee
- Hon. Professor in Pain Medicine, University of Edinburgh
Until May 2018, Lesley was a full time pain specialist in the Lothian Chronic Pain Service, and Hon Professor, University of Edinburgh. She took up post as Chair of Pain Medicine, University of Dundee, in May 2018.
Her qualifications and training include: FRCP (Edin) 2013; FFPMRCA, 2007; CCT in Anaesthesia, 2000; PhD, University of Edinburgh. Spinal Mechanisms of Neuropathic Pain. (Supervisor: Prof Arthur Duggan) 1997; FRCA 1994; MBChB, University of Edinburgh 1990; BSc(Hons) 1987.
She has been on the Editorial Board of the British Journal of Anaesthesia since 2005, and an Editor from 2010 - 2021, handling up to 150 manuscripts per year, as well as being involved in strategic planning for the journal. The impact factor has increased steadily from 4.22 in 2010 (3rd out of 26 journal) to 9.8 in 2025 (one of the top ranked journals in this category).
She in Lead for the Scottish Pain Research Community (SPaRC)/ NRS Pain Research Network. She is Vice Chair of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network (SIGN) Council, chaired the SIGN Guideline development group for Management of Chronic Pain (SIGN 136), 2013, and its recent update (2025/2026). She was previously Specialty Advisor for Chronic Pain, to the Chief Medical Officer. Through this role she co-chaired a new guideline for the Management of Chronic Pain in Children and Young People.
Research
Since undertaking a basic science PhD during her anaesthesia training, she has aimed to ensure that clinical practice is informed by research, and that current research is relevant to people with chronic pain.
She co-leads an extensive research programme (Chronic Pain Research Group) with Prof Blair Smith, with numerous research grants and scientific publications. Major projects include the UKRI/ Vs Arthritis/ Lilly funded Advanced Pain Discovery Platform, specifically PAINSTORM, CAPE and Alleviate.
Her research interests include neuropathic pain, chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy, long term effects of adverse childhood experiences on chronic pain, use and harms of pharmacological therapies in chronic pain management, assessment of chronic pain, and the role of physical activity in chronic pain management. She is leading an international initiative to improve translation in CIPN. Public and Patient Involvement is embedded in all her research projects.
Media availability
I am available for media commentary on my research.
Contact Corporate Communications for media enquiries.
Areas of expertise
- Cancer
- Chronic pain
- Drugs
Research projects
Project lead
Research project
Identifying predictors of neuropathic pain medication prescribing and response in diabetic peripheral neuropathy and chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy
Research project
Understanding how our early life experiences influence our long-term health.
Research project
Linking structural and functional neuroimaging with healthcare data to explore the effects of early life adversity on chronic pain, depression and analgesic use
Research project
Understanding barriers to increasing physical activity in chronic pain
Research project
Development and validation of an algorithm to identify people with chronic pain through primary care-based records.
Research project
Project to look at the pain caused by nerve damage
Research project
This project will propose a "pain patch" that is wearable for people who are going through chemotherapy.
Research project
A project to identify any onset or progression of neuropathy and pain for people receiving neurotoxic chemotherapy for cancer treatment.
Research project
PAINSTORM is a group of research centres from the UK and Belgium. Our aim is to understand the disease processes of NeuP
Project team
Research project
CAPE’s goal is to identify mechanisms of vulnerability to pain in those exposed to childhood adversity.
Other supervisor
Stories
Press release
People across Tayside could be crucial in heralding a transformation in care for chronic pain.
Press release
Targets to eliminate pain after surgery are a major cause of the opioid crisis in several countries, according to a new report co-authored by Professor Lesley Colvin of the University of Dundee.