3D-Printed Personalised Opioid Delivery Devices for Gastrostomy Administration in Paediatric Palliative Care
Not stated
- Funding
- Self-Funded PhD Students Only
- Application deadline
- 31 December 2026
About the project
About the Project Children with life-limiting illnesses depend on precise, reliable pain management — yet almost no opioid formulations are designed with them in mind. For paediatric patients with a gastrostomy, the problem is even more acute: standard dosage forms were never designed for this route, leaving clinicians relying on improvised, off-label preparations with unpredictable and potentially dangerous results. Better options are urgently needed. Conducted in collaboration with the clinical team at a UK leading research paediatric hospital, this PhD will use additive manufacturing to design and fabricate bespoke controlled-release opioid delivery devices optimised for gastrostomy administration in children. You will engineer novel device geometries using CAD and 3D printing to achieve predictable drug release, systematically optimise pharmaceutical-grade polymers for compatibility with opioid actives and the gastric environment, and develop robust dissolution methods, HPLC assays and quality frameworks aligned with regulatory standards. Throughout the project you will work directly alongside paediatric palliative care clinicians, ensuring every decision is grounded in genuine clinical need. We welcome graduates in Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biomedical or Chemical Engineering, or Materials Science with a minimum 2:1 or equivalent. Laboratory experience in formulation or analytical chemistry is desirable. Full training in 3D printing will be provided. Dr Alhnan has a leading expertise in pharmaceutical additive manufacturing https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/alhnan.html https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=boaKXLsAAAAJ&hl=en Informal enquiries should be directed to Dr Mohamed A Alhnan: Alhnan@kcl.ac.uk Funding Notes Applications are welcome year-round from Home/EU/Overseas self-funded students and applicants able to secure funding to cover all costs involved with PhD study, including living costs, tuition fees (and bench fees where required).