Want better care? Make your voice heard! Take part today Donate Now Home > About Us > Our research strategy > Barriers to research Barriers to research Progress in research into brain tumours has been slow - since 1971 there has been an overall increase in survival of less than 10% for people with a high grade brain tumour, one of the poorest improvements across all cancers. This highlights the need for investment in this field of research. Since the launch of our research strategy A Cure Can't Wait in December 2014, we have committed over £15.5 million to research. To date, that brings our total research commitments to over £34.1 million. In 2016, in the UK, only 1.9% of £580 million spent by the government and largest cancer research charities was spent on brain tumours. Increased voluntary sector and government funding remain essential. But funding alone is not enough. Here we outline several barriers to research and what we are doing to overcome them so that rapid advances in diagnosis, treatment and care are made. Leadership We believe that government have a responsibility to address the lack of progress in research in this field. Publicly funded research bodies such as the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and the Research Councils are open to applications from researchers working on any condition and judged in open competition. However, the priorities of institutions and researchers can be determined by the perception of Government priorities. The Government should show leadership and ambition to create a positive research environment and promote the UK as a leader of research in the field of brain tumours. This will help create greater enthusiasm, ambition and representation in this field within public research bodies that receive taxpayers' money. We believe the Government should set research priorities, identify where there are gaps in research funding and develop opportunities and incentives in the health and life sciences sector workforce to research in this field. The Government should also foster collaboration between charities and Government organisations to promote a better research environment. We're working in lots of different ways to build a thriving research community and increase investment in the field, and we'd love you to get involved. Find out more here! Workforce We know of many dedicated researchers who specialise and apply to brain cancer. But to improve the scope and quality of research applications we need to recruit more dedicated researchers from other fields and encourage talent and breadth of knowledge in neuro-oncology research. There needs to be more early-career opportunities for young researchers to specialize in this field and incentives for experienced researchers in related fields like neurology, neurobiology and neuroscience to apply their expertise in cancer. Investing in Future Leaders We want more medical oncologists (doctors who treat cancer with chemotherapy or medication) to specialise in neurology. Medical oncologists currently receive no mandatory training in neuro-oncology. This is relevant as medical oncologists primarily treat cancer with drugs, whereas clinical oncologists primarily treat cancer with radiotherapy. It is more common for medical oncologists to run clinical trials for cancer drugs. If medical oncologists received training in neuro-oncology we believe more would be attracted into the field and choose to specialise in treating people with brain tumours. We are funding Clinical Research Training Fellowships, which will include medical oncology, and will provide up to three years' of support for clinically qualified, active professionals to undertake specialised or further research training in the bio-medical sciences within the UK. Clinical Research Training Fellowships The UK is an attractive destination for scientific research. A diverse and skilled workforce plays a big part in that. For example, the Samantha Dickson Brain Cancer Unit at UCL hosts PhD students and postdoctoral researchers from across Europe who drive progress in brain tumour research. At Cancer Research UK's Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, 50% of workers are from a variety of EU member states. We must ensure that researchers from within the EU can continue to live and work in the UK unimpeded. This includes researchers and those involved in research such as healthcare professionals, technicians and academics and students. Resources Investment in the research infrastructure will improve our understanding of brain tumours and help fulfil the NHS mandate to create a positive research environment across the organisation. Biobanking is the process of collecting and storing biological samples for the purpose of research. A donor's biological samples and linked information can contribute to our understanding of tumour sub-types and track changes in the tumour over the course of the disease. However, the collection of tissue for banking varies widely across the UK. In many hospitals there is no infrastructure in place to collect tissue routinely, or in larger quantities. Accelerating Biobanking The NHS has committed to the development of opportunities and awareness of research. However, there are often administrative barriers to set up clinical trials, patients may not be told about the opportunity to get involved in appropriate trials and there is a limit on time clinical staff can spend engaged in research in centres which do conduct research. Clinical Trials & Research Info Line We want the NHS to do more to make it easier for its staff to participate in research. We believe that this will in turn help raise awareness of the benefits of involving people affected by brain tumours in research and could lead to more people with a brain tumour being asked to participate in research where appropriate. In this section Recommended reading Research Impact Report Our Scientific and SAB Advisors Research into adult brain tumours Child brain tumour research Funding opportunities for researchers Need help? Whether you've been diagnosed with a brain tumour, or a family member or friend has, we are here to help. 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