30 people are diagnosed each day with a brain tumour.
Robert Spier, (Bachelor of Commerce, 1958), pictured left, recently gifted the University of Birmingham with a donation in memory of his wife Jean, pictured right, who sadly died from a brain tumour in 2017.
Robert told us “I am supporting research at the University of Birmingham because I want my donation to go directly to frontline research. I want to be part of finding better treatments for the type of cancer from which Jean died. I would encourage others to make a gift, so you too can help experts to find a cure for brain cancer.”
This gift is particularly vital as around 30 people are diagnosed each day with a brain tumour. Brain tumours are particularly hard to diagnose and treat in a timely manner. Robert’s gift will contribute to research being lead by Professor Colin Watts, Chair of the Birmingham Brain Cancer Programme.
The research at Birmingham offers the best hope of dramatic improvement into treatment and cure. The Programme is the first of its kind will get more patients into trials, to study how they respond to treatment, and improve the treatment and survival of brain cancer patients. Professor Watts is using data to develop novel stratification for application in clinical trials.
Professor Watts said “it is thanks to connections with people such as Robert Spier that we will be able to begin this ground-breaking research and further our understanding of the effect of a hypoxic environment on gliomas.’