Experts gather at UCL Nervous System Tumour Research Workshop

The aim of the meeting was to discuss facilitating future collaborative neuro-oncology research in the London area and beyond.The one-day workshop which took place in the Euston Rooms of the Royal College of GPs featured three excellent plenary speakers Professor Ruggero De Maria (Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, Rome), Professor Philippe Lambin (University of Maastricht) and Professor Stefan M. Pfister (German Cancer Research Centre, Heidelberg) who provided an insight into their own research programmes and more broadly neuro-oncology research at their respective institutions.

Some of the major themes discussed at the workshop included Clinical Neuro-oncology; Target Identification and Validation; Imaging and Basic Mechanisms and models.

Event Organiser Professor Salomoni said: "London Cancer, an integrated cancer system working with UCL Partners, has one of the largest paediatric (GOSH), adolescent (UCLH, NHNN) and adult (NHNN, BH & BHRUT) neuro-oncology services in the UK. There are strong clinical research interests in imaging, neurosurgery, oncology (radiotherapy and medical oncology) and neuro-rehabilitation with multiple principal investigators of local, national and international clinical studies.

"These are exciting times for neuro-oncology research given the fundamental discoveries in the area of (epi)genomics of nervous system tumours. It is now crucial to translate these breakthroughs into novel therapies and improve the often-dismal prognosis of these neoplasms. This will be expedited by fostering interactions and collaborative efforts across different research groups and disciplines. This workshop is one of the many initiatives that have been planned to achieve this goal."