Brain Group

Professor Michael Jenkinson

Chair

Professor Michael D. Jenkinson was appointed as a Consultant Neurosurgeon at The Walton Centre in March 2010 and was appointed Professor of Neurosurgery at The University of Liverpool in 2019 and is the Sir John Fisher Foundation / RCSEng Chair of Surgical Trials.  

Professor Jenkinson sub-specialises in neurosurgical oncology for intrinsic brain tumours including awake craniotomy and intra-operative brain mapping for low grade glioma, midline and endoscopic approaches to intraventricular and deep intrinsic tumours, and stereotactic radiosurgery.  

Professor Juanita Lopez

Deputy Chair

Dr Juanita Lopez is a Consultant Medical Oncologist at the Phase I Drug Development Unit at the Royal Marsden and the Institute of Cancer Research, specialising in early phase translational drug development, focussing on the development of novel immune-oncology strategies and treatments for patients with malignant brain tumours. 

Professor Oliver Hanemann

Working Group Chair

Professor Oliver Hanemann is a clinical academic and has led the Brain Tumour Research Centre of Excellence funded by Brain Tumour Research in Plymouth for many years. Professor Hanemann has a long track record in Neuro-oncology including many fruitful collaborations, such as part of the ICOM or REiNS consortium.  

As a member of the scientific board of EANO and WFNOS and in grant review panels (e.g. Brain Research UK), Professor Hanemann has an insight into challenges faced in brain tumour research. 

Professor Anthony Chalmers

Working Group Chair

Professor Anthony Chalmers is Chair of Clinical Oncology at the University of Glasgow and Director of the CRUK Glasgow RadNet Centre. His clinical practice at the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre is devoted to the treatment of patients with brain tumours, and he runs the Translational Radiation Biology laboratory in the Institute for Cancer Sciences.

His main research interest is in improving outcomes for patients with glioblastoma by combining radiotherapy with drug therapies that target the DNA damage response.  

Mr Richard Mair

Working Group Chair

Richard Mair is Assistant Professor in Neurosurgical Oncology at the University of Cambridge and an Honorary Consultant Neurosurgeon at Addenbrooke’s Hospital. 

His lab group employ novel imaging and genomics techniques to try and understand brain cancer evolution and how this relates to interactions between intrinsic cancer cell mechanisms and the brain microenvironment. 

His clinical interest is in the surgical management of brain cancer. He undertakes a weekly operating list and is one of four dedicated neurosurgical oncology consultants that cover East Anglia. He leads the Minderoo Precision Brain Tumour Programme and the ICARUS biorepository in Cambridge. 

Dr Juliet Brock

Working Group Chair

Dr Juliet Brock was appointed as a Senior Clinical Fellow at the Royal Marsden Hospital in 2010, responsible for the SRS service for brain metastases. The following year, Dr Brock took up a consultant post in Brighton, sub-specialising in the management of malignant and benign tumours of the CNS and treatment of thoracic cancers. 

Her research interests have focused on improving the assessment, treatment and survivorship of patients diagnosed with a brain tumour, particularly vulnerable older people with high grade glioma.  

Mr Usama Ali

Consumer Representative

Usama Ali was diagnosed with a brain tumour during his undergraduate studies and underwent emergency treatment which included surgery and radiotherapy. Since then, he has been actively involved with various brain tumour organisations and regularly interacts with individuals who are living with, and/or have been affected by, a brain tumour diagnosis.

As a consumer representative for the NCRI Brain Group, Usama aims to facilitate the inclusion of a wide range of patient voices and experiences within brain tumour research, particularly those from underrepresented demographics. He is also passionate about advocating for better understanding of the impact that low-grade (or non-malignant) brain tumours can often have on patients’ quality of life and survivorship.

Usama is also undertaking doctoral research at the University of Oxford where he is using data from the national cancer registry and hospital records to investigate the epidemiology of all malignant and non-malignant brain and central nervous system tumours, and to explore variation and inequalities in brain tumour incidence, mortality and treatments across regions within England over the past few decades.

Ms Zoe Faulkner

Consumer Representative

Ms Zoe Faulkner is a member of the NCRI Consumer Forum, and consumer representative on the NCRI Brain Group.

Dr Karen Noble

Brain Tumour Research Representative

Dr Karen Noble is the Director of Research at Brain Tumour Research.

Dr Nicky Huskens

Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission Representative

Dr Nicky Huskens is the CEO of the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission.

Mr Kieran Prior

Cancer Research UK (CRUK) Representative

Mr Kieran Prior is a Research Programme Manager at Cancer Research UK.

Dr Pinelopi Gkogkou

NIHR Representative

Dr Pinelopi Gkogkou is a Brain Sub-Specialty Lead for the Eastern ENIHR Clinical Research Network. She is also a Consultant Clinical Oncologist at Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.