Dr Maxton Pitcher

Max was appointed to the staff at St Mark's and Northwick Park in 1998 from Oxford, where he was Senior Registrar. He graduated in Medical Sciences from the University of Cambridge in 1985 and qualified in 1988 from the University of Oxford. His research on sulphate-reducing bacteria, sulphur metabolism and ulcerative colitis at The MRC Dunn Clinical Nutrition Centre won him a University prize for his MD Thesis in Cambridge in 1996. He is senior editor of a new textbook, "Clinical Guide to Gastroenterology" published in March 2019 by Wiley. As well as running a specialist IBD clinic, Max sees general Gastroenterology outpatient referrals and patients with GI cancer. The latter are managed in close collaboration with specialist surgical colleagues at St Mary's Hospital and The Hammersmith Hospital. Max is clinical lead for acute Gastroenterology inpatient workload admitted to Northwick Park Hospital, as well as the therapeutic ERCP service. His "extralumenal" interests include golf, SCUBA diving, horse riding and playing the violin in chamber ensembles and orchestras including the European Doctors Orchestra, of which he has been Concertmaster.

Oesophagus and stomach conditions: Dyspepsia, non-ulcer dyspepsia, Peptic ulcer disease, Helicobacter pylori infection, Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (indigestion and heartburn), Hiatus hernia, Barrett’s oesophagus, Oesophageal stricture, Eosinophilic oesophagitis, Achalasia Cancer of the oesophagus and stomach. Small intestinal conditions: Malabsorption, bacterial overgrowth, Food intolerance including lactose intolerance, Coeliac disease, Crohn’s disease. Colonic conditions: Irritable bowel syndrome, Diverticular disease, Crohn’s disease, Ulcerative colitis, Microscopic colitis, Colonic polyps, Colon (bowel) cancer, Haemorrhoids (piles), Fistula-in-ano, Anal fissure. Liver, gallbladder and conditions of the pancreas: Alcohol-related liver disease, Fatty liver and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), Cirrhosis, Autoimmune hepatitis, Primary biliary cholangitis (PBC,) Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), Haemochromatosis, Gallstones, Jaundice from blockage of the bile duct from suspected gallstone or cancer, Pancreatitis, Cancer of the pancreas, Liver cancer, Autoimmune pancreatitis. Cancer exclusion and of predisposing conditions Concerns regarding family history of cancer or inflammatory bowel disease