Afifah was born and raised in Kelantan, Malaysia. She completed her undergraduate degree in Medical Imaging at MARA University of Technology Malaysia at the end of 2013 before attending Imperial College London for a MSc programme for one year. In 2015, she completed her MSc Medical Ultrasound and her final research focussed on the assessment of different anastomosis angle on arteriovenous fistula function using duplex ultrasound. This study further deepened her interest in clinical research area especially involving ultrasound. She was later awarded a scholarship under the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia and National University of Malaysia (UKM) for a DPhil study under the supervision of Professor Paul Leeson and Dr Adam Lewandowski. Her DPhil project, funded by The Welcome Trust, focussed on Trial of Exercise to Prevent Hypertension in young Adults (TEPHRA).