Vetri Velamail speaks about need for brain tumour research funding at Summit

Taylan’s Project attended the Brain Tumour Consortium Summit in London last week.  We were joined by former Rotherham GP Vetri Velamail, who spoke passionately in front of over 100 patients, carers, scientists, clinicians and charity representatives.

Vetri worked in Rotherham as a GP for more than 20 years and is a proud father of three much loved children. In 2009, suffering with double vision, an optician at Specsavers sent him to A&E and he was diagnosed with a Glioblastoma Multiforme. He has defied his prognosis of 6 – 12 months.

The summit was organised by Brain Tumour Research and other members of the Brain Tumour Consortium. Set to be an annual event, the summit held in London on 29th February was the first of its kind and focused on the progress of the consortiums three manifesto priorities: Early diagnosis, Implementation of NICE’s best practice guidance and increasing the investment in brain tumour research. Speakers included Professor Garth Cruickshank, Professor Roy Rampling, Professor David Walker and Professor Geoff Pilkington as well as Vetri , patient Joannie McCutcheon and Sacha Langton-Gilks, mother of a young patient.

Vetri implored everyone to sign Rachel Clarke’s e-petition http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/17419 and said “From not sleeping through worrying about my illness, I now lie awake thinking about how I can help raise awareness of the desperate need for charitable fundraising for research into brain tumours… I am getting weaker and I know I cannot be helped, but there must surely be a cure for future generations.”