Research

Childhood Cancer Conference 2025

Children with Cancer UK is the leading childhood cancer charity in the UK, supporting families and childhood cancer research since 1988. We are delighted to announce the Children with Cancer UK Conference 2025 will be taking place on 24-25 November 2025 at Edgbaston Park Hotel and Conference Centre, Birmingham

Embracing Research and Impact

As a charity, we are committed to working in partnership with both patients advocates and the public as we recognise the valuable insight this involvement provides to our research efforts. Patient representatives are invited to attend the conference.

Children with Cancer UK also values its strong and established partnerships with others in the paediatric and young adult cancer community. Our regular conferences and workshops bring together such stakeholders in childhood cancer treatment and research to exchange knowledge and ideas.

Research conference

The 2025 Research Conference: Embracing Research and Impact is here!

We’re excited to announce our research conference for 2025 – Embracing Research and Impact.

The conference will bring together leading researchers, clinicians, healthcare professionals, early career researchers, representatives from funders across the childhood cancer sector and patient advocates to share their latest findings and discuss the latest trends in the field.

You’ll learn all about cutting-edge research, clinical trials, and innovative treatment strategies that are improving outcomes for children and young adults with cancer, with plenty of opportunities to network with the chance to explore new collaborations and partnerships aligned with new funding opportunities from Children with Cancer UK.

You’ll hear from experts in paediatric, teenage and young adult cancers who will share their knowledge and experience, and you’ll have the chance to ask questions and participate in interactive discussions.

Conference highlights include

We have 4 keynote speakers joining us for the Research Conference to discuss progress and outputs from their research projects:

Name: Dr Sally George 

Institution: The Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Foundation Trust  

About: Dr Sally George is a Group Leader at The Institute of Cancer Research and an Honorary Consultant Paediatric Oncologist at The Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. After completion of subspecialty clinical training, she completed a laboratory-based PhD at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), focused on identifying novel therapeutic options for a poor outcome group of patients with high-risk neuroblastoma. She then undertook a postdoctoral fellowship at The Francis Crick Institute before returning to ICR to set up the Developmental Oncology Team.

Dr George played an instrumental role in the set-up of the national molecular profiling initiatives for childhood cancer. Within the first Stratified Medicine Paediatrics (SMPaeds) programme, her particular focus was the research arm of the study which involved serial tumour and matched cell-free DNA sequencing to understand drivers of relapse in paediatric cancers. She is also an active member of the SIOPEN Biology and New Drug Development groups and also the Chief Investigator of the ‘MINT’ early phase clinical trial (MIBG in Neuroblastoma with Talazoparib) which will open in the UK, Netherlands, Germany and Canada in 2025.

Name: Professor Chris Halsey 

Institution: University of Glasgow 

About: Professor Chris Halsey is Chair of Paediatric Haematology at the University of Glasgow who is an expert in translational research for childhood leukaemia. Her research centres on the biology and treatment of leukaemias that have spread to involve the central nervous system (CNS). Current projects include investigating the adaptation of leukaemic cells to CNS and bone marrow microenvironments and identifying metabolic vulnerabilities that can be exploited therapeutically. 

 Professor Halsey is widely recognised for her leadership in integrating biological insights into trial design and has led several UK-wide initiatives to refine risk stratification and personalise therapy in paediatric haematology. She is a strong advocate for collaboration between clinicians, researchers, and families. 

Name: Professor Steven Clifford

Institution: Newcastle University 

About: Professor Steve Clifford is a globally recognised leader in the field of childhood brain tumour research. As Director of the Centre for Cancer at Newcastle University, he has pioneered molecular stratification approaches for medulloblastoma and other CNS tumours. His work has helped lay the foundation for precision medicine in paediatric neuro-oncology, informing clinical trial design and risk-adapted treatment strategies. Professor Clifford is also a long-standing collaborator on Children with Cancer UK–funded projects and a mentor to early-career researchers across the UK. 

Name: Professor Kathy Pritchard-Jones

Institution: University College London / Great Ormond Street Hospital 

About: Professor Kathy Pritchard-Jones is emeritus Professor of Paediatric Oncology at UCL and the immediate past president of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology (SIOP). A global authority on Wilms tumour and childhood kidney cancers, she has played a pivotal role in shaping international treatment protocols and clinical trial networks. Professor Pritchard-Jones is a vocal champion of data sharing, early diagnosis, and international collaboration — and has played a key role in the development of integrated care and research models across Europe and globally. 

We have patient families, collaborators and early career researchers speaking, giving updates from a broad spectrum of the community.

Agenda

Children with Cancer UK Research Conference 2025
Dates: 24^th – 25^th November 2025
Location: Edgbaston Park Hotel & Conference Centre – Birmingham

DAY 1: Bridging the Gap – Making Research Real

10:00 – 10:05 | Welcome

Speaker: Nick Vaughan-Williams (Provost and Vice-Principal, University of Birmingham)

10:05 – 10:10 | Children with Cancer UK
Speaker: Gavin Maggs (CEO, Children with Cancer UK)

10:10 – 10:20 | Welcome & Vision
Speaker: Professor Bruce Morland and Professor Pamela Kearns, University of Birmingham

10:20 – 11:00 SMPaeds Update
Speaker: Dr Sally George (Group Leader: Developmental Oncology, Institute of Cancer Research)

11:00 -11:30 | Refreshment Break

11:30 – 12:50 | Popcorn Research: Lightning Talks
Short talks by early-career researchers

12:50 – 14:00 | Lunch

14:00 – 14:30 | Industry Spotlight: The Future of Childhood Cancer Research
Speaker: Dr Frank Mussai (University of Birmingham)

14:30 – 15:15 | International Benchmarking of Childhood Cancer Survival by Stage (BENCHISTA Project) – Clinical and Family Perspectives
Speaker: Emeritus Professor Kathy Pritchard-Jones (UCL) & Dr Angela Polanco (NIHR / PPIE Lead for BENCHISTA Project)

15:15 – 15:40 Refreshment break

15:40 – 16:00 | Smoothing the Edges: Early phase clinical trial participation – a Research Nurses perspective

Speaker: Tracey Crowe (Lead Nurse for Paediatric Oncology Research, Royal Marsden Hospital)

16:00 – 16:30 | Transforming Potential into Progress: What Fellowship Support Makes Possible
Speaker: Professor Zoë Walters (Professor in Translational Epigenomics, University of Southampton)

16:30 – 16:50 | SAP Update + Open Forum
Speaker: Scientific Advisory Panel

16:50 | Closing Remarks

— Evening Activities —

17:00 – 18:00 – Drinks Reception and Poster Exhibition

19:00 – Late – Evening Dinner and Entertainment

DAY 2: Collaboration, Connection, and Real-World Change

09:30 – 09:40 | Welcome Back
Speaker: Professor Bruce Morland

09:40 – 10:25 | INSTINCT-MB: Discovery, development, and delivery of effective combination therapies for high risk medulloblastoma
Speaker: Professor Steven Clifford (Chair of Molecular Paediatric Oncology & Director, Newcastle University Centre for Cancer)

10:25 – 10:55 | Projects for All: Research Showcase – Bespoke preclinical models to improve outcomes for Ewing sarcoma patients
Speaker: Dr Elizabeth Roundhill (Research Fellow, University of Leeds)

10:55 – 11:30 Refreshment break

11:30 – 12:30 Behind Every Grant: Our Partners
Topic: Acknowledging supporters and collaborators.

Cancer Research UK – C-Further, Tommy Rennison

Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission, Nicky Huskens

Azaylia Foundation, Dominik Byrne

CCLG: The Children & Young People’s Cancer Association, Ashley Ball-Gamble

12:30 – 13:00 | Projects for All: Research Showcase – Developing novel immunotherapies for paediatric T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia
Speaker: Professor Marc Mansour (Clinical Professor of Paediatric Haemato-Oncology and Honorary Consultant, UCL)

13:00 – 14:00 | Lunch & Posters

14:00 – 14:30 | Research Update – CSF microRNAs for the diagnosis of CNS germ cell tumours.
Speaker: Professor Matthew Murray (Professor in Cellular and Molecular Pathology, University of Cambridge)

14:30 – 15:15 | Research Update – The unsolved challenge of CNS leukaemia
Speaker: Professor Chris Halsey (Head of School / Professor of Paediatric Haemato-Oncology, University of Glasgow)

15:15 – 15:45 | Projects for All: Research Showcase – The Paediatric Hepatic International Tumour Trial – PHITT
Speaker: Sarah Pirrie (Principal Biostatistician, Cancer Research UK Clinical Trials Unit, University of Birmingham)

15:45 – 16:00 | Closing Reflections

Speaker: SAP Members

Conference details

Date and location

The conference will take place on 24-25th November 2025 at Edgbaston Park Hotel and Conference Centre, Birmingham

Conference aim

We aim to provide a forum for clinicians, scientists and other stakeholders to discuss and debate key themes, share knowledge

Tickets

Get your tickets here