Today we are delighted to welcome supporters to our Centre of Excellence at the University of Plymouth.
Scientists at the Plymouth Centre, led by Professor Oliver Hanemann (pictured centre foreground above), have a world-leading track record in researching low-grade brain tumours occurring in teenagers and adults. By identifying and understanding the mechanism that makes a cell become cancerous, the team is exploring ways to halt or reverse them. Among the types of brain tumours the team focuses on are schwannoma, meningioma and glioma which also inform work on other brain tumour types including high-grade tumours like glioblastoma (GBM).
Among the guests today is patient Lee Masters who was diagnosed with a low-grade astrocytoma, aged 30, in 2017. Despite chemotherapy, in November 2020, Lee’s tumour was found to have grown and was reclassified as a grade 3 (or high-grade). Following radiotherapy and further chemotherapy, the tumour has remained stable.
Lee (pictured above with sister Paula left) said: “Over the years I’ve researched other treatments and made changes to my lifestyle and diet.
“I understand that there have been advances in treatment available overseas but it seems outrageous that as well as living with this disease, patients are often self-funding and looking at alternative treatments themselves.”
Lee’s family raises funds for research through an annual Walk of Hope between Torquay and Paignton organised by his sister Paula.
Other families, who are visiting to hear a presentation from Principal Investigator Professor David Parkinson and tour the labs before placing tiles on the Wall of Hope, include parents Keith and Lorraine Evans who lost their son Keith junior (pictured with his dad above) to a GBM and have raised almost £12,500 through a Ride on Keith cycling event and the husband, brothers and granddaughters of Denise Ross who also died from a GBM. Denise’s son Simon (pictured below with his mum) completed a year of brutal endurance challenges in 2023 and has raised more than £3,500 to sponsor vital research.
We are grateful to everyone visiting today for sponsoring days of research to help find a cure for brain tumours.
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