• David Taylor, of Winchmore Hill, North London, and father of Sue Blasotta, set up In Sue’s Name, to continue his daughter’s legacy of raising funds for cancer research after she died from brain cancer.
• A devout Catholic, David discovered that many other families within the parish of St Monica’s in Palmers Green, North London, had also lost loved ones to brain tumours.
• In February 2017, In Sue’s Name, which has partnered with national charity, Brain Tumour Research, launched a £1 million campaign to fund research at Queen Mary University of London where it is supporting vital research into the most aggressive and lethal form of brain tumour, glioblastoma multiforme – the brain tumour type which killed Sue.

Representatives and supporters of In Sue’s Name, a charity based in Winchmore Hill, North London, were at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) on Wednesday 28 November where they are funding vital research into the disease.

Since the charity was last at QMUL a year ago to put up six tiles on the Wall of Hope, representing six days of research sponsored, the charity has held a number of key events, including five golf days with the last in September raising more than £11,000 and an Irish Night which raised over £16,000. On this occasion, 12 tiles marking 12 days of research were placed on the Wall of Hope at the charity Brain Tumour Research’s Centre of Excellence in Whitechapel. To date the charity has raised an incredible £167,000.

David Taylor who lost his beloved daughter Sue Blasotta in 2011, aged 42, to a glioblastoma brain tumour (GBM) was at QMUL, which focuses on research into this specific type of highly aggressive brain tumour, with other families who had lost loved ones to brain tumours. The tiles placed at QMUL on this occasion were in memory of patients ranging from 18-month-old baby, India Kisberg and Jacob Black, five, to mum Davina Pott, aged 37, as well as parents and grandparents who all died in their 60s – Tony David, Michael Brook Taylor (a friend of David’s since they were both eight years old), Peter David Murphy and Trutz Haase, the latter two who passed away earlier this year.

David explained: “My faith in God has been a huge source of comfort and strength since losing Sue and gave me the inspiration to set up In Sue’s Name to continue her legacy.

“I can still remember my complete shock and disbelief when I discovered that brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer, yet historically just 1% of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease. This is unacceptable.

“I am indebted to all who support In Sue’s Name and am very proud today to be able to say that we have now sponsored the equivalent of 18 days of research at QMUL. We already have further monies in the pipeline, meaning that we will be back with other families to put up a further 12 tiles in the spring next year.

“Added to that, we also have big plans afoot to mark what would have been Sue’s 51^st birthday on 15 March 2019.”

Sue Farrington Smith, chief executive of Brain Tumour Research, said: “We are very grateful to our Member Charity, In Sue’s Name, for their continued support and delighted to welcome them here again at QMUL. This partnership is helping us in our mission to bring about better outcomes for patients – from improved awareness for earlier diagnosis, to the development of more effective, personalised treatments and targeted drugs.”

Money raised for Brain Tumour Research will help fund dedicated UK Research Centres of Excellence where scientists are focused on improving outcomes for patients and, ultimately, finding a cure. Whilst welcoming recent funding announcements by the UK Government and Cancer Research UK, and taking pride in our influence on such significant change, our campaigning work continues to raise awareness of the importance of sustainable research. Our community deserves the £30-35 million a year research funding needed to make a real difference.

If you would like to make a donation please go to www.totalgiving.co.uk/donate/in-sues-name  

For further information please contact Liz Fussey at Brain Tumour Research on 07811 068357 or email liz@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 work in collaboration with Member Charities around the UK, including In Sue’s Name.

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
• Historically, 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.