Call for more treatment options for brain tumours

Brain Tumour Research says south-west England has the second highest rate of brain tumours per 100,000 in England but claims the condition is allocated just 1% of national spending on cancer research.

The charity says in the UK the condition kills more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer.

They have joined patients and scientists at the University of Plymouth's Brain Tumour Research Centre in calling on the prime minister to increase funding to help find more treatments for brain cancer.

Earlier this year the government passed the Rare Cancers Act - one of its aims is to provide earlier detection and improved treatment for brain cancers.

The issue has been highlighted by Scottish swimmer Archie Goodburn who is 25 and has three inoperable brain tumours.

He made an emotional plea to Andy Burnham on BBC Breakfast last month asking him to intervene and appoint a national brain cancer lead.

Goodburn asked the PM to give us "a chance to fight for our lives".

The prime minister has agreed to meet with him.

"The prime minister and health secretary are looking forward to meeting Archie shortly to hear firsthand about his experiences and discuss what improvements we can make in this vital area," said a spokesperson from the Department of Health and Social Care.

At the research centre 50 scientists are studying why low grade tumours develop and the role the immune system might have in their growth.

David Parkinson, a professor of neuroscience at the Derriford-based research facility, said they hope to translate their knowledge into therapies for patients.

He said: "We do have one trial that's ongoing at the moment, to repurpose anti-retroviral drugs for treatment of a tumour called a Schwannoma, but it is difficult to get things into clinic trials.

"Funding is always a issue, and that can be a frustration for us in terms of taking our basic science and what we are discovering here, and really making an impact for patients in the future."

The research centre is home to a biobank containing about 1,000 tumour and blood samples taken from consenting patients who have undergone neurosurgery next door at Derriford Hospital.

The long-term ambition, is to one day in the future to be able to personalise treatments for particular tumour type - there are more than 120 different types - by targeting specific genetic changes within them.

Brain Tumour Research is currently funding a five-year programme of research at the Plymouth facility and estimates at the moment 75% of funding for research comes from charities like them.

Hugh Adams, from the charity, said it wanted the government to invest a similar amount into brain cancer research that it does into other cancers.

He said: "If we look at areas where we had success like breast cancer and leukaemia, which is wonderful - it's because they put money in."

In January 2026, the National Institute for Health and Care Research announced increased investment of more than £25m in its Brain Tumour Research Consortium.

The consortium aims to transform outcomes for adults and children and their families who are living with brain tumours.

A spokesperson from the Department of Health and Social Care said: "We applaud Archie Goodburn and the many other individuals and organisations working tirelessly to campaign for progress on brain cancer."

New treatments that develop from years of research cannot come quickly enough for Clare Smerdon from Paignton.

She has a tumour called an Astrocytoma.

Smerdon said if she had breast cancer there would be many more drugs she could try but her treatments are limited to just four options.

Clare said: "I was initially told I had two to three years to live.

"I have now survived four years, but my overall chance of survival is very low in comparison to something like breast cancer.

"I don't begrudge that at all.

"It just sometimes feels like your life doesn't matter if you have a brain tumour... and it does!

"There is a real need here to come up with something in brain tumour research."