The university friend of a young man killed by a brain tumour visited Westminster to hear MPs and clinicians review a year of momentous progress.

Lydia Fenny, from Docklands, attended the All Party Parliamentary Group on Brain Tumours (APPGBT) at the House of Commons on Tuesday 17^th July. 

She was among families, patients, clinicians, carers, scientists, and MPs at the event as the group set out priorities for the forthcoming parliamentary year. They heard that the APPGBT would drive forward recommendations of an inquiry into the social and economic impacts of brain tumours when it reports in the autumn.

Among the speakers was Sue Farrington Smith, Chief Executive of the Brain Tumour Research charity, who said: “We are proud to have played a key role as the APPGBT has campaigned for change over 12 years. We now look forward to the inquiry report as well as continuing to see the impact of the newly-formed Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission along with new funding commitments and other initiatives announced this year.”

Phil Blackmore, a financial analyst, was diagnosed with a low-grade brain tumour in August 2016 at the age of 31 and his sudden death, months later on New Year’s Eve, has inspired Lydia and many others to raise funds and awareness for research into brain tumours.

Lydia said: “I saw Phil just a few weeks before he died and he seemed to be doing so well. For him to die so suddenly and at such a young age just opened my eyes to how cruel this disease is and to how many people are experiencing the devastation that it brings.

“It saddens me that brain tumours kill more children and adults under 40 than any other cancer, yet just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to a cure. The least I can do in Phil’s memory is try and help to change this. I was pleased to see my MP Stephen Timms at the APPGBT and I look forward to continuing to campaign with the Brain Tumour Research charity.”

For further information, please contact:
Farel Williams at Brain Tumour Research on 01908 867221 or 07592 502708 Farel.Williams@braintumourresearch.org

Notes to Editors

Brain Tumour Research is the only national charity in the UK dedicated to raising funds for continuous and sustainable scientific research into brain tumours, and we are a leading voice calling for greater support and action for research into what scientists are calling the last battleground against cancer.

We are building a network of experts in sustainable research at dedicated Centres of Excellence whilst influencing the Government and larger cancer charities to invest more nationally.

We welcome recent funding announcements for research into brain tumours from the UK Government and Cancer Research UK – £65 million pledged over the next five years. However, this potential funding of £13 million a year comes with a catch – money will only be granted to quality research proposals and, due to the historic lack of investment, there may not be enough of these applications that qualify for grants from this pot.

We want research funding parity with breast cancer and leukaemia. We are calling for a £30-35 million investment every year for research into brain tumours in order to fund the basic research groundwork needed to accelerate the translation from laboratory discoveries into clinical trials and fast-track new therapies for this devastating disease.

The Brain Tumour Research charity is a powerful campaigning organisation and represents the voice of the brain tumour community across the UK. We helped establish and provide the ongoing Secretariat for the All Party Parliamentary Group for Brain Tumours (APPGBT).

We are supporting the crucial APPGBT 2018 Inquiry into the economic and social impacts of brain tumours and will publish their report in the autumn. We are also a key influencer in the development strategy for the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission. 

Key statistics on brain tumours:

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

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