Family and friends of a man that passed away from a brain tumour are helping to fund scientific research into finding a cure for the disease.

Duncan Scott, from Claygate in Kent, died from a brain tumour in December 2016, just 18 months after he was diagnosed. Since his passing, family and friends have been actively involved with the charity Brain Tumour Research in fundraising for pioneering research into the disease raising over £6,000 and still have more fundraising events in the pipeline.

Duncan’s two sisters, Tara Harris and Gayle Scott, were joined by Gayle’s partner Chris and good friends Jon and Jan to place a plaque in memory of Duncan at the Brain Tumour Research’s Wall of Hope at the Centre of Excellence at the University of Portsmouth.

The centre, one of four receiving funding from the charity, is focused on research to improve treatments for patients with brain tumours and, ultimately, finding a cure. Each tile laid on the wall represents the £2,740 it costs to fund a day of research.

After a freak cycling accident in March 2015, Duncan was referred to a neurologist after his left side didn’t appear to be healing from his injuries as it should and he began dragging his left foot. An MRI scan in June 2015 revealed the devastating news that Duncan had a grade four glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), a very aggressive brain tumour. Though he endured rounds of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, the tumour grew back and Duncan died the day after Boxing Day 2016, aged just 55.

Tara, 51, from the Isle of Wright, said: “Duncan was a wonderful man with such a passion for making the most out of the life. He would be so happy to think that we are helping to bring about advances in science which will in turn lead to more effective treatments and better survival rates for people diagnosed with GBMs.  It’s such a cruel type of brain tumour, particularly for someone who was so young, healthy, bright and vibrant like Duncan.

“Being at the research centre all together and seeing what they are doing here, really draws attention to the cost of research and work that needs to be conducted to find a cure for brain tumours.”

Led by Prof Geoff Pilkington, the team at Brain Tumour Research’s Centre of Excellence at the University of Portsmouth is now one of the largest dedicated teams of lab-based researchers working on this disease within the UK. The team is currently working on five complementary research programmes to investigate brain tumours in both adults and children, including primary and metastatic tumours. Their goal is to create novel and multi-targeted therapies for the treatment of brain cancer.

Brain tumours are indiscriminate; they can affect anyone at any age. What’s more, they kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer, yet just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease.

Tim Green, Community Fundraising for Brain Tumour Research, said: “We are really grateful to Tara, Gayle and all their family and friends for raising vital funds to support important research into a disease which affects so many people and their families each year. Stories like Duncan’s reminds us all that we cannot allow this desperate situation to continue.”

To make a donation to Brain Tumour Research go to https://www.braintumourresearch.org/donation

For further information, please contact:
Lexie Jenkins at Brain Tumour Research on 01908 867222 or 07591 206545 or Lexie.Jenkins@braintumourresearch.org

Notes to Editors

Brain Tumour Research is the only national charity in the UK focused on funding sustainable research to find a cure for brain tumours. We have established a game-changing network of world-class Research Centres of Excellence in the UK. Embracing passionate member charities nationwide, over £6 million was raised towards research and support during 2017.

We are campaigning to see the national spend on research into brain tumours increased to £30 - £35 million a year, in line with breast cancer and leukaemia. The unprecedented success of our 2015 petition led to the 2016 Westminster Hall debate and Brain Tumour Research taking a leading role in the Government’s Task and Finish Working Group convened to tackle the historic underfunding for research with the report being published in 2018.

Key statistics on brain tumours:

• Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer
• They kill more children than leukaemia
• They kill more men under 45 than prostate cancer
• They kill more women under 35 than breast cancer
• Just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease
• In the UK 16,000 people each year are diagnosed with a brain tumour
• Less than 20% of those diagnosed with a brain tumour survive beyond five years compared with an average of 50% across all cancers
• Brain tumours are indiscriminate; they can affect anyone at any age
• Incidences of, and deaths from, brain tumours are increasing.

Please quote Brain Tumour Research as the source when using this information. Additional facts and statistics are available from our website including our latest Report on National Research Funding. We can also provide case-studies and research expertise for media.