He was awarded his Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 1985, his Master of Surgery Degree of the University of Cambridge in 1991 and a Hunterian Professorship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 1992. He held research awards from the Cancer Research Campaign from 1989 to 1994.

He undertook his higher professional training in Surgery at Poole General Hospital, at St Georges Hospital, London, at Portsmouth University Hospitals, and at Southampton University Hospitals, from 1985 to 1994, and trained in all aspects of General Surgery, including upper gastrointestinal surgery, colorectal surgery, diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopy, urology, vascular and orthopaedic surgery, cardiac and thoracic surgery, breast and endocrine surgery, hernia and hepatobiliary surgery including laparoscopic cholecystectomy, and plastic and oncoplastic surgery. He has a wide experience of emergency and trauma surgery.

In 1994, he moved to Leicester as Senior Lecturer in Surgery at the University in Sir Peter Bell’s Unit, and as surgeon to the regional breast centre at Glenfield Hospital, where he was closely involved in a charitable appeal to build a modern Breast Centre.

In 1999, he was invited to return to Southampton University Hospitals as a consultant general surgeon and Honorary Senior Lecturer with specialist interests in Breast and Endocrine Surgery. He has a very busy practice in the treatment of Breast Cancer and Benign Breast Disorders; Adult and Children’s Thyroid and Parathyroid Surgery; Laparoscopic Gall Bladder Surgery, Soft Tissue, Skin and Hernia Surgery.

At National Level, David was Secretary of the British Association of Surgical Oncology from 2000-2002, where he oversaw its modernisation and name change to the Association for Cancer Surgery; He has been Editor in Chief of the EJSO, the Journal of Cancer Surgery since 2003.

David also holds a senior position as Consultant Surgeon to the Armed Services Reserve, with whom he has been associated since 1975, in a variety of capacities. He has active service medals for work in the Gulf in 1991 and 2003, and travels widely to support the health care needs of young service personnel at risk on operational deployments in war zones.

David is a member of the Association for Cancer Surgery, and a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England.