A research centre will be established in a city university to find a cure for the most aggressive form of brain cancer.

Brain Tumour Research and Beatson Cancer Charity are collaborating to open the Scottish Brain Tumour Research Centre of Excellence which will be based at the University of Glasgow and University of Edinburgh laboratories.

It will bring together top brain cancer experts to find a cure for glioblastoma (GBM), an aggressive brain tumour with an average survival time of 12 to 18 months.

This development has been praised by those affected by brain tumours in Scotland like Antiques Roadshow expert and Brain Tumour Research patron Theo Burrell.

(Image: Brain Tumour Research)

The 37-year-old was diagnosed with GBM in June 2022 after suffering from symptoms for six months.

She said: “This announcement is great news for brain tumour patients like me in Scotland.

“Although I continue to make the best of each day, my tumour will return and it will kill me.

“My care has been excellent and new advances in science have helped me so far. However, only by funding research into brain cancer can we get closer to a life-saving cure.”

 

(Image: Brain Tumour Research)

Another affected supporter is Claire Cordiner, from Edinburgh, who has lost four family members to brain tumours, three of which were from GBM.

She said: “To know there will be a Scottish Brain Tumour Research Centre of Excellence opening in Scotland is just fantastic news.

“Nobody knows why this is happening to our family and others over and over again. There are no answers because nobody knows why, so it’s vital we get the funding for this research to happen and for breakthroughs to be made.

“It would mean so much to me and my family that people are listening, and people are doing something about it.”

More than 1,000 people in Scotland are diagnosed with a brain tumour each year, with 433 people diagnosed with a high-grade brain tumour.

Financial support will allow researchers in Edinburgh and Glasgow to increase patient clinical trials and improve outcomes.

Dan Knowles, chief executive of Brain Tumour Research, said: “New, improved treatments for GBM patients are desperately needed.

“At present, new discoveries and approaches are not progressing quickly enough into clinical testing in patients.

“The Scottish Brain Tumour Research Centre of Excellence will help bridge this gap leading to pivotal preclinical proof-of-concept data to support clinical trial development for patients.”

Martin Cawley, chief executive officer of Beatson Cancer Charity, said: “This is such an exciting initiative and one which has the positive potential to make a significant impact into advancing research and ultimately new treatment options for brain tumours.

"I have no doubt this will result in a deeper understanding of the complexity of brain tumours and lead to a breakthrough in exciting new treatments in the years ahead.”