brainstrust events

Our Thrive with brainstrust events will help you live better with a brain tumour. Below you can find information about upcoming webinars and meetups, both online and face-to-face. Filter by Patient and Carer events to see what’s happening this month. If you have any questions about our supportive events or would like to book a coaching session, please email hello@brainstrust.org.uk

You can also browse our calendar of upcoming fundraising events and campaigns. For the latest information about races and challenges, please keep in contact with event organisers or email fundraising@brainstrust.org.uk

Running events by region – brainstrust would love you to support the charity by taking on a challenge for us.  See what events are available in your region and do something amazing today!

  • All Events
  • Fundraising Events
  • Patient & Carer Events
December 23rd, 2024

Vestibular Shwannoma Research Focus Group – Mon 23rd Dec 15.00

Have you or a loved one been impacted by vestibular shwannoma causing struggles with balance or steadiness? This is a focus group to gather feedback on a new research project aiming to develop support for people impacted by vesibular shwannoma. If you are a patient or caregiver of someone with vestibular shwannoma, we would appreciate […]

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January 3rd, 2025

A dose of neuroscience – Friday 3rd Jan 12.00

Are you or a loved one navigating the complexities of a brain tumour diagnosis? We understand the challenges that come with such a journey, including anxiety and the constant internal chatter that can often be overwhelming. In this session our focus will be on providing you with neuropsych education and practical techniques designed to help manage […]

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January 7th, 2025

Tea and a wee blether – Tues 7th Jan 12.00

Grab a cuppa and come and join us for tea and a wee blether!! Here you’ll have the opportunity to meet, chat and connect with others in our community. It’s for anyone affected by a brain tumour diagnosis, and just like our face-to-face meetups it is a warm, welcoming safe space for you. There’s no […]

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January 8th, 2025

Neuroscience informed hypnotherapy workshop – Weds 8th Jan 2.00pm

This workshop isn’t just about coping: it’s about empowerment. By understanding the psych-neurological aspects of your condition and embracing the potential for change through neuroplasticity, you’ll learn how to establish a foundation of inner strength and positivity that will support you throughout your journey.

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January 8th, 2025

Living with a low grade glioma – Weds 8th Jan 4.00pm

Living with a low grade glioma brain tumour brings about its own challenges. Not only do you have to live with the symptoms that these tumours can bring (epilepsy has a high prevalence rate) but also the uncertain trajectory of a low grade glioma. By low grade we mean grade 2 tumours, and those that […]

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January 8th, 2025

Art time – Weds Jan 8th 10.30am

Come and join us for our first art time of 2025, whether you’re a seasoned artist or a novice – join us for a very special two hours to discover how painting can be a wonderful mindful activity, allowing stresses and worries to fade into the background as you focus on the task at hand. […]

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January 9th, 2025

High grade group – Thurs 9th Jan 1.00pm

This informal social group is just for people living with a high grade (3/4) tumour diagnosis and their supporters. There are no fixed conversation topics and no agendas. Just pop in to say hello and spend time in the same space as others who understand.  

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January 12th, 2025

Run Heaton Park

Run Heaton Park Half Heaton Park, Middleton Road, Higher Blackley, M25 2SW Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at this traffic free half marathon with an incredible backdrop. Be motivated by live music as you take on 13.1 miles around the stately grounds of Heaton Park in north Manchester. This is the […]

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January 15th, 2025

Neuroscience informed hypnotherapy for “Scanxiety” – Weds 15th Jan 2.00pm

An innovative approach to building your self-stamina, voice and confidence to help you overcome scanxiety. This workshop will offer a way to build your personalised plan to manage the impact of waiting on your mind and body, understand why it’s so important to wait in a place of calm, and will give you techniques and […]

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January 15th, 2025

Living with Meningioma? Join our fireside chat. – Weds 15th Jan 7.00pm

STOP’EM is a study for adults with a meningioma that needs surgical removal and who have not had a seizure before. We want to know if a short course of an anti-seizure medication (ASM) started 1 day before surgery prevents seizures happening after surgery. Professor Michael Jenkinson and Associate Professor Neurosurgery Adel Helmy are joining us […]

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January 17th, 2025

Meningioma matters – Fri 17th Jan 1.00pm

We know how hard it is living with a meningioma, whether you’re a patient or a caregiver. We’d love to hear how you are getting on, what you’re struggling with. Conversation is one of life’s sweetest joys. Good conversation is not just a fringe benefit – it’s the means by which we stay sane, contented […]

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January 20th, 2025

Dealing with the overwhelm – Mon 20th Jan 2.00pm

Feeling overwhelmed when you have a brain tumour is perfectly natural – it shows that you care – but it can distract you from looking after yourself, meaning you have less energy and drive to perform at your best. This workshop will help you to address and overcome feeling overwhelmed when you, or someone you […]

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January 23rd, 2025

Colloid cyst group – Thurs 23rd Jan 1.00pm

We know that having a colloid cyst diagnosis can feel isolating and information is often hard to find. Come along to this relaxed virtual meetup to connect with others that really get it. There’s no agenda – grab a cuppa and pop along to say hello.

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January 23rd, 2025

Whilst I wait : hypnotherapy workshop – Thurs 23rd Jan 19.00

This workshop is designed to transform waiting into a period of growth and self-discovery. You will gain insights into the significance of maintaining calm during waiting periods and how it can transform your overall experience.  

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January 29th, 2025

Calmness and confidence: hypnotherapy workshop – Weds 29th Jan 14.00

This workshop will bring you to the forefront of your life, harnessing the power of neuroscience-informed techniques to anchor you in a state of serene self-assurance. You will learn to leverage the techniques and insights gained from previous workshops, enhancing your ability to harness calmness and confidence in any situation.

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February 2nd, 2025

Warwick Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at this traffic free half marathon. Join 2,000 fellow runners and take in the spectacular, scenic views of the Warwickshire countryside. A half marathon is a long way but the big benefit of this event is that the last 2km is all downhill allowing for […]

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February 9th, 2025

Run Aintree Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Run Aintree Half Marathon. Join us for a unique opportunity to run a Half Marathon at the world famous Aintree Racecourse, best known for annually holding the world-famous Grand National steeplechase. Each Mile will be accurately marked out and we have plenty of […]

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February 9th, 2025

Run Aintree 10k

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at this traffic free, fast and flat race at the world famous Aintree Racecourse.  This is a lapped event at The home of the Grand National Steeplechase.  Book your place today.  Registration closes on 29th January 2025.  

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March 9th, 2025

Cambridge Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust as we take on the 2025 Cambridge Half Marathon for people with a brain tumour. This flat and fast course starts and finishes on Victoria Avenue in the centre of Cambridge with Midsummer Common as the event site. The route has been updated for 2025 and will now take you through the […]

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March 23rd, 2025

Hampton Court Palace Half 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Hampton Court Palace Half. A historical running experience you will not want to miss. The start line sits on the front courtyard of Hampton Court Palace, and your finishing line will be found in the stunning Palace Gardens. The Palace Half course is […]

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March 23rd, 2025

Reading Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the well established and supported Reading Half Marathon.  Join 5,000 runners on the start line for the 42nd Reading Half Marathon. The Reading Half Marathon not only takes in the highlights of the centre of Reading where you will experience huge crowd support but also still […]

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March 23rd, 2025

Sheffield Half Marathon

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Sheffield Half Marathon. A major event in the UK’s running calendar, the Sheffield Half Marathon is South Yorkshire’s biggest event of its kind. Thousands of runners of all abilities will be taking part, raising many thousands of pounds for numerous great causes. With a city […]

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March 30th, 2025

WE Run for brainstrust returns in 2025

In loving memory of Wayne Elvin—a much-loved and deeply missed parent and friend of the school—we are proud to bring you the WE Run for brainstrust 5k and 10k event at Culford School. When: Sunday 30 March 2025 Where: Culford School, Bury St. Edmunds, IP28 6TX Event start time: 10:00am Race start time: 11:30am This […]

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April 6th, 2025

Milan Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the fantastic Milan Marathon. A fast and scenic course that runs mostly in the heart of the city, medal and jersey for all finishers, plus a state-of-the-art Running Festival that turns into a modern and engaging running fair for three days. The start and finish […]

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April 13th, 2025

Paris Marathon

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the world famous Paris Marathon. The Schneider Electric Marathon de Paris is now one of the biggest marathons in the world and perfectly combines a personal challenge with the chance to discover one of the world’s greatest cities. Race day will see you […]

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May 4th, 2025

Great Birmingham 10k 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Great Birmingham 10k. The AJ Bell Great Birmingham Run is the Midlands’ biggest and best running event, with thousands of Brummie runners taking to the streets every year to challenge themselves and raise cash for charity. There’s everything you’d expect from a […]

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May 4th, 2025

Great Birmingham Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Great Birmingham Half Marathon. The AJ Bell Great Birmingham Run is the Midlands’ biggest and best running event, with thousands of Brummie runners taking to the streets every year to challenge themselves and raise cash for charity. There’s everything you’d expect from […]

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May 10th, 2025

Nuclear Races 2025 – 1.5, 3,6 & 12k challenges

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Nuclear Races in Brentwood, Essex. Events are open to anyone aged 13 and over and includes challenges at 1.5, 3, 6 & 12km. Nuclear is well known for delivering UK’s most award winning events with big, high quality, achievable, natural & man-made […]

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May 10th, 2025

Tough Mudder 5km / 15km Challenge 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the 2025 Tough Mudder in London. The ultimate obstacle course challenge now has 20+ obstacles over a 15 Kilometre run. With no competition and no timing, it’s just you, your teammates and muddy strangers working together to conquer the course and earn the world-famous orange […]

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May 11th, 2025

Great Bristol Run 10k 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Great Bristol Run 10k. Each year, thousands of runners push their perseverance and passion to the limit and take on the super-scenic 10k and half marathon routes at the AJ Bell Great Bristol Run. If stunning views, inspiring history and graffiti murals are […]

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May 11th, 2025

The Great Bristol Run Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Great Bristol Run Half Marathon. Each year, thousands of runners push their perseverance and passion to the limit and take on the super-scenic 10k and half marathon routes at the AJ Bell Great Bristol Run. If stunning views, inspiring history and graffiti […]

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May 11th, 2025

Leeds Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Rob Burrows Leeds Marathon. The Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon will see 7,777 participants take on a brand new route through Leeds that starts and finishes at Headingley Stadium.  This is an event that truly is for everyone, so whether you are an experienced runner […]

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May 11th, 2025

Etape Caledonia Cycle Event – 40,55 or 85 miles

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Etape Caledonia Cycle Event.  Will you take on the 40, 55 or 85 mile option for brainstrust? Etape Caledonia returns to the idyllic village of Pitlochry on Sunday 11 May 2025. This is the UK’s original closed-roads sportive, with just 5,000 places on […]

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May 18th, 2025

Great Manchester Run 10k 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Great Manchester Run 10k. The AJ Bell Great Manchester Run is the city’s original and best-loved running event – over 99% of runners say they’d recommend it to a friend. And in true Mancunian style, it’s a party from start to finish, […]

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May 18th, 2025

The Great Manchester Run Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Great Manchester Half Marathon. The AJ Bell Great Manchester Run is the city’s original and best-loved running event – over 99% of runners say they’d recommend it to a friend. And in true Mancunian style, it’s a party from start to finish, […]

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May 18th, 2025

Hackney Half Marathon

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at this fast, flat, PB potential half marathon. The Hackney Half sells out every year and is renowned for its festival atmosphere and fantastic crowd support.  There will be entertainment stations along the route and a festival village for you to enjoy post race. Registration closes […]

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May 24th, 2025

Tour of Pembrokeshire Cycle Event – 25/60/105 miles

Join brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Tour of Pembrokeshire Cycle Event.  Choose either  the 25, 60 or the 105 mile challenge. Commencing in the city of St David’s, this event will showcase some of the most remarkable aspects of Pembrokeshire, including its rugged coastline, serene country lanes, and the magnificent […]

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May 25th, 2025

Edinburgh Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Edinburgh Marathon. The marathon route is one of the fastest in the UK making that elusive personal best a distinct possibility! Edinburgh Marathon joined the world’s elite road races in 2012 by becoming the first marathon in Scotland to be officially recognised […]

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May 25th, 2025

Edinburgh Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Edinburgh Half Marathon 2025. Come and be part of Scotland’s BIGGEST running festival! This ever-growing festival of running is now a major event in the Scottish sporting calendar. Starting in Edinburgh, the course heads out through East Lothian offering stunning views and […]

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June 15th, 2025

Great North Swim 2025 – 1/2 mile, 1 mile, 2 mile, 5k or 10k Challenge

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Great North Swim challenge.  Choose your distance from 1/2 mile, 1 mile, 2 miles, 5k or 10k. The Great North Run is the UK’s biggest open water swimming event providing a fantastic opportunity for families, individuals, experienced and beginner swimmers to enjoy […]

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July 13th, 2025

Ride Reigate Cycle Challenge – 25, 50 or 100km

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at Ride Reigate 2025. A cycle sportive event offering three scenic routes. With 100K, 50K and family friendly 25K route, our local sportive offers something for everyone from keen cyclists to leisure and family.  

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July 27th, 2025

Hillsborough Castle 10k 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Hillsborough Castle 10k.  This ROAD CLOSED race will start and finish within the beautiful Grounds of Hillsborough Castle, before heading out onto the surrounding rural roads of Hillsborough and taking in historic attractions in the local area such as Hillsborough Fort and […]

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July 27th, 2025

Hillsborough Castle Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Hillsborough Castle Half Marathon.  These ROAD CLOSED races will start and finish within the beautiful Grounds of Hillsborough Castle, before heading out onto the surrounding rural roads of Hillsborough and taking in historic attractions in the local area such as Hillsborough Fort […]

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August 3rd, 2025

York 10k

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at this fast, flat, PB potential 10k. Running since 2009, the York 10k has been described as one of the country’s most beautiful city runs and Yorkshire’s most popular 10k. 5000 runners took part in 2024, will you join them in 2025? Closing date for registrations […]

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September 7th, 2025

Run Thorpe Park 10k 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the Run Thorpe Park 10k.  Run a  10k around the rides and rollercoasters inside the fantastic THORPE PARK Resort and be first in line to enjoy everything the Resort has to offer. Following the race, you will be able to make full use […]

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September 7th, 2025

Run Thorpe Park 5km 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at the ‘fun for all the family’ Run Thorpe Park 5km  challenge   around the rides and rollercoasters inside the fantastic THORPE PARK Resort and be first in line to enjoy everything the Resort has to offer. Following the race, you will be able to make […]

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September 28th, 2025

Robin Hood Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at this well established  half marathon event which is being held for the 45th time in 2025. This one loop half marathon course now attracts over 9,000 runners. The Robin Hood Half Marathon is one of the longest established and most popular city centre road events […]

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October 5th, 2025

Cardiff Half Marathon

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at this well established Half Marathon which is now into its 22nd  year and part of the super half series that includes Prague, Berlin, Lisbon, Valencia. The Cardiff Half Marathon has grown into one of the largest and most exciting road races in Europe. It is […]

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October 12th, 2025

Bournemouth Half Marathon

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at Bournemouth Half Marathon. Breathtaking views of the sea, cool coastal routes and the highlights of Poole and Bournemouth will be on show at this fantastic Half Marathon  event. The kind folk of the south coast will be proud to welcome you to their beautiful part […]

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October 12th, 2025

Royal Parks Half Marathon 2025

Join team brainstrust’s mission to help people with a brain tumour at  the most spectacular half marathon that central London has to offer. Charity runners will glide through four of London’s stunning Royal Parks, Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, St James’s Park and The Green Park. The 13.1m extraordinary route brushes past London’s most famous landmarks, including The […]

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Introduction

The Brain Tumour Data Dashboard lets you explore up -to-date, population level data about the brain tumours diagnosed in England between 2013 and 2015. Using the drop down menus on the left you can select different groups of patients to view in the charts below. In these charts the number of patients for every 100 diagnoses is displayed as images of people. Patients have been grouped by date of diagnosis, type of tumour, age, gender, and region in England.

For each group of patients you can explore the different routes to diagnosis, the proportion of those who received chemotherapy or radiotherapy, as well as the survival of the patients within each group. For more information about what these metrics mean please see the glossary.

How to use

  1. Select the year of diagnosis using the drop down menu.
  2. Select your patient group of interest from the four drop down menus in the following order:
    1. Tumour group
    2. Age at diagnosis
    3. Region of England
    4. Gender of patient
  3. To view a second chart to compare different groups of patients, click the ‘compare’ button.The second chart will appear below the first chart.

*Note that the tool is best used on a laptop or tablet rather than a mobile phone*

Unavailable data

Some of the data in these charts is not available.There are two main reasons for this:

  1. How the data has been grouped

If you cannot select a patient group from the drop down menus, the data is unavailable because of how the data has been organised.

Public Health England has grouped the data like a branching tree. The bottom of the tree contains all the patients with brain tumours, and then each branch divides the data by a certain characteristics, like age, or location of tumour. But the data is divided in an order, starting with location of the tumour (endocrine or brain), then by age, region, and gender. Age is at the start because it makes a bigger difference to survival rates and treatment rates than gender or region. Sometimes, after the data has been split by type of tumour and age, there is not enough data to be split again. This is because to protect patient confidentiality groups cannot contain less than 100 patients. Because some groups cannot be split further, you cannot create ‘totals’ for everyone by region or gender. For example, you cannot see results for all ages by region, or all brain tumours by gender. If these totals were calculated and released, it might be possible to identify patients, which is why Public Health England cannot release this data.

  1. Statistical reasons and data availability

If you can select a patient group from the chart menus, but the chart does not display, the data is unavailable for one of several reasons:

  1. Data is not yet available for the selected year from Public Health England.
  2. Data is not available because the data quality is too poor to release this statistic.
  3. Data is not available as the statistic is not appropriate for this group.
  4. Data is not available because the standard error of the estimate was greater than 20% and so the estimate has been supressed.

Up to date brain tumour data

Brain tumour data may influence the decisions you make about your care. Data also helps you understand the bigger picture, or landscape, in which you find yourself.

Brain tumour data and statistics influence the focus, and work of organisations like brainstrust. The information helps us to understand the scale and impact of the problems we are setting out to solve.

This tool helps you understand the landscape in which you find yourself having been diagnosed with a brain tumour. This landscape can be particularly tricky to navigate as there are many different types of brain tumour, all of which have a different impact.

The information you see represents the most up-to-date, official, population level brain tumour data available for England. Over time we will be adding to the brain tumour data available and publishing reports, with recommendations, as a result of what we learn from this data.

The data behind this content has come from Public Health England’s National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS) and is a direct result of the ‘Get Data Out’ project.

This project provides anonymised population level brain tumour data for public use in the form of standard output tables, accessible here: http://cancerdata.nhs.uk/standardoutput

Incidence

The number or rate (per head of population) of new cases of a disease diagnosed in a given population during a specified time period (usually a calendar year). The crude rate is the total number of cases divided by the mid-year population, usually expressed per 100,000 population.

Malignant

Malignant tumours which grow by invasion into surrounding tissues and have the ability to metastasise to distant sites

Mortality

The number or rate (per head of population) of deaths in a given population during a specified time period (usually a calendar year). The crude rate is the total number of deaths divided by the mid-year population, usually expressed per 100,000 population.

Non-malignant

Not cancerousNon-malignant tumours may grow larger but do not spread to other parts of the body.

Survival

The length of time from the date of diagnosis for a disease, such as cancer, that patients diagnosed with the disease are still alive. In a clinical trial, measuring the survival is one way to see how well a new treatment works. Also called ‘overall survival’ or ‘OS’.

Routes to Diagnosis

Under the ‘Routes to Diagnosis’ tab in the Brain Tumour Data Dashboard, you can explore the ways patients have been diagnosed with brain tumours. There are many ways, or routes, for cancers to be diagnosed in the NHS. A ‘route to diagnosis’ is the series of events between a patient and the healthcare system that leads to a diagnosis of cancer. The routes include:

  1. Two Week Wait

Patients are urgently referred by their GP for suspected cancer via the Two Week Wait system and are seen by a specialist within 2 weeks where they are diagnosed.

  1. GP referral

Diagnosis via a GP referral includes routine and urgent referrals where the patient was not referred under the Two Week Wait system.

  1. Emergency Presentation

Cancers can be diagnosed via emergency situations such as via A&E, emergency GP referral, emergency transfer or emergency admission.

  1. Outpatient

Outpatient cancer diagnoses include diagnoses via an elective route which started with an outpatient appointment that is either a self-referral or consultant to consultant referral. (It does not include those under the Two Week Wait referral system).

  1. Inpatient elective

Diagnosis via an inpatient elective route is where diagnosis occurs after the patient has been admitted into secondary care from a waiting list, or where the admission is booked or planned.

  1. Death Certificate Only

Diagnoses made by Death Certificate Only are made where there is no more information about the cancer diagnosis other than the cancer related death notifications. The date of diagnosis is the same as that of the date of death.

  1. Unknown

For some patients with a cancer diagnosis, there is no relevant data available to understand the route to diagnosis.

 

More information

If any of the statistical terms in this section of the brainstrust website are hard to understand, we recommend looking them up here:

Cancer Research UK’s Cancer Statistics Explained

http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/health-professional/cancer-statistics/cancer-stats-explained/statistics-terminology-explained#heading-Seven

If you are looking for help understanding terms relating specifically to brain tumours, and treatment, then the brainstrust glossary is available here:

https://www.brainstrust.org.uk/advice-glossary.php