Hello everyone,
This week saw the first meeting of 2026 for the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Brain Tumours (APPGBT). We were pleased to welcome the leads of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Brain Tumour Research Consortium Bid. This consortium aims to transform outcomes for adults and children diagnosed with brain tumours by expanding access to early-stage clinical trials, strengthening research capacity across the UK and supporting the next generation of scientific leaders. You can read more about the APPGBT in our Latest News.
The Consortium forms part of the Government's commitment to brain tumours in the National Cancer Plan. If you would like to learn more about the National Cancer Plan and what it means for the brain tumour community, join our webinar with Dr Karen Noble, Director of Research, Policy and Innovation, on Tuesday 17th February at 12.30pm. Please contact enews@braintumourresearch.org to receive your Teams link.
On Monday, we attended a parliamentary debate on increasing survival rates for brain tumours. We welcomed a speech from Dr Scott Arthur MP, sponsor of the Rare Cancers Bill, who highlighted the talent and innovation of Dr Faye Robertson, based at our Scottish Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence, and Dr Sarah Kingdon, who is completing the first Scottish Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission Neuro-Oncology Fellowship hosted at the Centre. We also welcomed an intervention from Sir John Hayes MP calling for increased funding for research into brain tumours, following a briefing we provided ahead of the debate.
Looking ahead to next week, we will be convening an Industry Roundtable with representatives from the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, pharmaceutical and biotech companies, to discuss the challenges of progressing new therapeutics and devices and delivering clinical trials to improve the health outcomes for brain tumour patients.
Karen, Hugh, Katherine and Jana