During this Glioblastoma Awareness Week, we are delighted to spotlight three exceptional researchers who have recently stepped into co-lead roles at our Brain Tumour Research Centre of Excellence at Queen Mary University of London.
Their appointment is a key part of the renewed Centre of Excellence funding awarded to Queen Mary and reflects our strategic commitment to growing research capacity and supporting early career scientists. Already embedded in the Centre’s collaborative ecosystem, these co-leads are driving forward innovative projects for glioblastoma research that span RNA biology, artificial intelligence, and clinical modelling – bringing fresh momentum to our vision of finding a cure for all types of brain tumours.
Dr Lovorka Stojic – exploring the hidden world of RNA in glioblastoma
Dr Lovorka Stojic is a senior lecturer and group leader at Barts Cancer Institute, and her research focuses on a lesser known but incredibly important part of our genetic code: long non-coding RNAs. Her research explores how these non-coding molecules – once thought to be “junk”– play critical roles in tumour development and progression.
Working closely with Professor Silvia Marino, Director of the Queen Mary Centre of Excellence, they’ve already identified some RNAs that are active only in glioblastoma and are now exploring whether these could be used to help diagnose the disease earlier or even treat it.
With support from Brain Tumour Research, she will recruit a PhD student to further investigate these mechanisms, paving the way for RNA-based strategies that could transform glioblastoma diagnosis and treatment.
Dr Stojic said: “RNA-based approaches represent an expanding class of therapeutics. I anticipate our work will help develop new strategies to improve outcomes for glioblastoma patients.”
Dr Radu Zabet – using artificial intelligence to understand gene activity
Dr Radu Zabet, a senior lecturer at the Blizard Institute, is combining artificial intelligence (AI) with genomics to better understand how genes are controlled in glioblastoma, one of the most aggressive types of brain tumour.
His research focuses on the parts of our DNA that act like switches – turning genes on or off at the right time. When these switches don’t work properly, cells can behave abnormally and become cancerous. Dr Zabet’s team is using AI to predict how these switches function in glioblastoma and is validating those predictions in the lab. This approach is helping them identify which genes may be driving the disease and could be targeted with new treatments.
What makes his work stand out is the use of explainable AI – models that not only make predictions but also show how they arrived at them. This transparency is especially important in medical research, where understanding the reasoning behind a result helps build trust and ensures safety.
With support from the Centre of Excellence, Dr Zabet’s lab has welcomed a new PhD student and is now working to build a detailed gene regulatory map of glioblastoma. This work will help uncover the molecular mechanisms behind the disease and open up new possibilities for therapy.
Dr Zabet said: “The Centre of Excellence funding has been vital in enabling this research, but just as important has been the opportunity to collaborate closely with other scientists working towards the same goal. The more we tackle this problem from different angles together and the more we learn from each other, the closer we get to a cure.”
Dr Thomas Millner – making research models more realistic to help patients sooner
Dr Thomas Millner is a Clinical Senior Lecturer at the Blizard Institute and an Honorary Consultant Neuropathologist at Barts Health and UCLH NHS Trusts. At our Centre of Excellence at Queen Mary University, he leads on both clinical and experimental neuropathology. His dual roles help bridge the gap between the research teams in the Centre of Excellence and the clinicians caring for patients.
Thanks to funding from Brain Tumour Research, scientists at the Centre have already developed a way to predict which drugs might work best on an individual patient’s tumour cells – an exciting step towards personalised treatment. Now, Dr Millner is focused on making that process even smoother and building experimental models that better reflect real-life conditions, including how tumours respond to chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
With support from Brain Tumour Research, he’ll be co-supervising a PhD student with Professor Silvia Marino. Together, they’ll work on refining research models and streamlining the pipeline so that when promising new treatments are found, there’s a clear path to getting them to glioblastoma patients as quickly as possible.
Dr Millner said: “The most difficult hurdle in researching brain tumours is getting treatments from the lab to the patients who really need them. The Brain Tumour Research Centre puts us in an excellent position to achieve this and to take our new findings into the clinic.”
These new co-leads exemplify the collaborative, multidisciplinary spirit that defines our Centres of Excellence. Their diverse expertise – from RNA biology and AI to protein biochemistry – strengthens our collective effort to find better treatments and, ultimately, a cure for brain tumours.
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