Construction is underway of an iconic footbridge in Hemel Hempstead, which is to be named after Alfie Jack Morland, who passed away  from a brain tumour in 2007, aged just 5½ months .

Alfie’s family have set up a hugely successful Umbrella Group in his name, and have so far raised over £60,000 for Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust.

See the article on the Great British Life website by clicking here.

To find out more about our Umbrella Groups, please click here, or you can find out about other ways in which you can help by clicking here.

Tracey and Jack tell their story. Photograph courtesy of the Scunthorpe Telegraph.

See the full news story to read about Jack’s fight.

Many thanks go out to Tracey and Jack for raising both funds for brain tumour research and public awareness of brain cancer.

Professor Steven Clifford and his team at  Newcastle University, funded by Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust, have developed a test for children who have been diagnosed with medulloblastoma, the most common malignant childhood brain tumour. It will allow doctors to determine a much more detailed understanding of the severity of a tumour, enabling more appropriate treatment options and a more accurate prognosis.

The test has just been approved for implementation in European clinical trials at a meeting in Vienna at the International Society for Paediatric Neuro-Oncology conference.  It is set to pave the way for the development of similar tests across other tumour types.

See press release for further details…

As Sue says, “William was an amazing little boy, full of life, loving and funny, with an amazing ability to attract people wherever he went. When he was 6 years old he was diagnosed with a rare brain tumour, a Diffuse Pontine Glioma. This incurable disease, that only affects children, took our beautiful William’s life just four and a half months later, aged only 7; he died in our arms.

We were absolutely destroyed and couldn’t understand the purpose of our lives, but over time, we realised we had a compelling need to go beyond ourselves, and to help those children who are suffering just as William did. The D*Silva project has been started to make a difference for those children and to shine a light for William, to make a mark on the world for him, as he will never get the chance to do it for himself.

As music is a big part of our lives we decided to write an album as a tribute to William, using the funds generated from sales to support the charities that helped William and us through our most difficult times. This album will be Williams’s legacy. 80% of all download sales will be donated through TigerTot Records with the aim of supporting the work of the Round Table Children’s Wish, the Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust, and the Make A Wish Foundation, all of whom so readily provide amazing help and opportunity to children and families everywhere.

The album is entitled “Hope” as this is something we believe everyone deserves, but sadly not all have. William should be here, but he isn’t – and other children will lose their fight against this terrible illness so please help us to help these children and their families. Through this project should one family be spared the ordeal that William suffered, or should one child experience their most desired wish, then it will have all been worthwhile. William is our shining light; our whole life, and we will miss him forever.

We have received amazing support and fantastic feedback from all over the world, and if there is anyone out there who has any contacts or services they can offer which could help this project, please get in touch, we’d love to hear from you.

The album is now available for download on iTunes and all other major download sites, we hope you enjoy it and spread the word so we can raise a fortune for our amazing charities. Please help a great cause!”

For additional information about D*Silva please go to www.myspace.com/dsilvahq

To purchase a CD at a cost of £10.00 (plus postage & packaging of £1.00) please contact the SDBTT office on 0845 130 9733 or email enquiries@sdbtt.co.uk

*** UPDATE: By clicking on the image below, you can listen to ”Hope”, one of the songs from the album***

Prof. Steven Clifford, Newcastle University

The new grants include three laboratory-based research projects at the Universities of Newcastle and Cambridge and the Institute of Cancer Research at Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust. In addition we have launched a joint clinical trials initiative with Cancer Research UK in which we are co-funding two clinical trials for brain tumour patients, as well as providing a project officer and biomedical scientist to promote and support further UK-based trials.

This research has been made possible by the inspirational efforts of all our supporters in raising funds for brain tumour research. 

Read more about the exciting new grants…

The grant will enable us to provide many different ways of supporting people including a free telephone helpline, email and online discussion groups, a series of patient-centred events, roadshows and provision of information.

Carly Hornbuckle, whose daughter Bella aged 5 has been diagnosed with a brain tumour, said: “The support provided to me by the Trust has been fantastic. I got a lot out of speaking to them while I was waiting for Bella’s scan results during a very traumatic time – it is great news that this grant will enable the Trust to support many more families who are going through the same experiences as we are.”

Paul Carbury, SDBTT Chief Executive, says: “We are delighted with the award from the Big Lottery Fund. The funding will enable us to significantly expand our services for the benefit of children and adults who have been diagnosed with a brain tumour. The project will enable more people to access our services so we can improve outcomes for patients.”

SDBTT has helped fund The Pathways Project, which has produced guidelines for healthcare professionals to follow in order to spot the multiple symptoms that are most commonly associated with childhood brain tumours.  A further project is now underway to publicise these guidelines and to promote awareness of the symptoms of childhood brain tumours.

See the full article here.

Over 120 people had a fabulous night of wonderful entertainment with great shows and lovely surprises! With all hands on deck the team produced a fantastic and hugely successful show for everyone.

The evening raised an enormous £1,487.50 which will go towards the Nick Ryan Umbrella Fund.

A huge THANK YOU to Chris Ryan, Anne Rowland and the cast and crew for producing and organising the event for SDBTT in Nick’s memory.

The Group has completed a large number of challenge events, with many more planned for the future.  Together, they have so far raised nearly £8,000 – what an achievement!  The JustGiving blog celebrating the Group’s success can be read here.

The Friends Group was formed after Edward Dyson tragically died from a cancerous brain tumour, aged just 30.  The Group’s webpage dedicated to Edward can be seen here.  You can make a donation to the fund by visiting the Group’s JustGiving webpage.

Very many congratulations and a great big ‘thank you’ to the Friends of SDBTT – Edward Dyson Group for all their ongoing hard work and enthusiasm to fund vital research into brain tumours.

The SDBTT-funded research has been published in peer-reviewed science journal Cell Death & Disease, and could lead to improved treatment options for children affected by medulloblastoma, the most common childhood brain tumour type.

See the full press release  and journal article to find out more.