Brain Tumour Conference 2025 | Blog

The hugely successful day represented the first conference dedicated to brain tumour research to be held in Wales. 

With almost 100 attendees, two international speakers and a broad programme of presentations, the conference was a brilliant occasion that showcased the brain tumour research happening across Wales.

Making Wales a leader in brain tumour research

Cancer Research Wales launched the BATRI (Brain Tumour Research Initiative) in 2024, with the goal of making Wales a leader in brain tumour research and delivering improvements for patients. 

As well as funding research projects directly, the initiative aims to foster a thriving research community in Wales by bringing together academics, clinicians and patients to work collaboratively and drive innovation.

Hosting a brain tumour conference was a key step towards this latter mission. Conferences offer an opportunity to showcase work that is taking place and stimulate discussion and networking, allowing best practice to be shared and new ideas to be developed. 

By hosting the Cancer Research Wales Brain Tumour Conference, we were thrilled to provide these opportunities to the brain tumour research community in Wales.

Wales’s first-ever brain tumour conference

The conference was opened Dr James Powell, consultant oncologist and clinical lead for the BATRI Steering Committee, and Adam Fletcher, our Chief Executive Officer, who highlighted that this was the first brain tumour conference of its kind in Wales and how BATRI funding had made it possible. 

We were then honoured to have an address from Julie Morgan MS, who has a longstanding interest in health affairs and gave wholehearted support to everyone working on brain tumours across Wales.

International speakers

Across the day, the conference had four keynote presentations from renowned experts who had travelled to Cardiff to share their exciting research. Professor Frederik de Smet of KU Leuven spoke about his team’s efforts to generate and characterise experimental models of brain tumours based on patient samples collected from across Belgium.

Dr Harpreet Hyare, from University College London, demonstrated how advances in MRI technology are allowing more precise and detailed information to be gathered on brain tumours. 

Professor Bjarne Kristensen of Copenhagen University presented his research into the genetic changes that drive brain cancer cells to invade other parts of the brain. Finally, Dr Matthew Williams from Imperial College London outlined his experiences of taking a new treatment option, in this case ‘tumour-treating fields’, from initial research to clinical trials and now into clinical practice.

Talks from Welsh-based researchers

As well as the great variety of keynote talks, the conference featured ‘flash talks’ on a range of subjects from Welsh-based researchers. 

Areas covered in these talks included radiotherapy, genetic analysis of tumours, the immune system’s response to brain cancers and the best ways to meet the care needs of patients. 

Related to the latter topic, we were delighted to have a moving and powerful presentation from Kathy, a Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) representative, about caring for a brain tumour patient and subsequently contributing to a number of research studies.

Outside of the talks, the conference had more than 20 poster presentations for delegates to engage with over the day. 

Once again, the variety of research subjects was impressive and a testament to the great work already being undertaken in Wales, both in NHS settings and universities.

Impressive level of brain tumour research

Dr Florian Siebzehnrubl, scientific lead for the BATRI Steering Committee, said:

“I was really amazed by the strong interest from researchers, clinicians, and professionals in the Brain Tumour Conference. 

The many abstracts we received highlighted the impressive level of brain cancer research across all themes of BATRI. We heard exceptional talks from the keynote speakers, but also from local delegates whose abstracts were selected for an oral presentation. I think the conference was a fantastic success.”

Building new collaborations

The inaugural Cancer Research Wales Brain Tumour Conference delivered beyond expectations, really highlighting how brain tumour research is already a strength in Wales and how many talented scientists and clinicians are bringing through innovations in this area. 

The conference provided these researchers with fertile ground for networking and building new collaborations, which will only further cultivate a thriving research community.

With the support of BATRI, a host of new projects will be taking place over the coming years that promise to further drive forward developments for patients. We look forward to showcasing their successes at our next Brain Tumour Conference!