Brain Tumour Awareness Month 2026
March 2026 is Brain Tumour Awareness Month! Join us throughout the month and together we can march towards a world where everyone affected by a brain tumour can live a longer, better life.
What’s happening this Brain Tumour Awareness Month?
This Brain Tumour Awareness Month, we’re celebrating how far we’ve come and the supporters who’ve made it all possible, while looking ahead to the breakthroughs to come.
Thirty years of progress has shown us what’s possible when a community comes together: Childhood diagnosis times halved. Groundbreaking treatments approved. Vital support for those affected. We still have so much work to do, but with you beside us, we know we’ll succeed.
Keep reading to learn more about different ways you can get involved this Brain Tumour Awareness Month!
- Stride towards cures with us at The Twilight Walk
- Raise lots of dough by holding your very own Big Bake
- Help spread awareness with our Better Safe Than Tumour campaign
Thirty years of progress, powered by you
Thirty years ago, Neil and Angela Dickson sat at their kitchen table and founded the Samantha Dickson Research Trust after losing their daughter Samantha to a brain tumour just seven days before her 17th birthday.
At the time, research was scarce, government support was lacking, and families facing this devastating disease had nowhere to turn. The Trust laid the foundations for what would become The Brain Tumour Charity, created by a merger with Brain Tumour UK and the Joseph Foote Trust.
We’re not marking a 30th anniversary. Rather, we’re celebrating 30 years of progress, powered by our supporters, fundraisers, volunteers, and researchers. We’re reflecting on how far we’ve come while acknowledging that, in Neil and Angela’s words, “we still have a mountain to climb” to ensure that everyone affected lives a longer, better life.
A treatment 20 years in the making
Thanks to research we funded over 20 years ago, Alexander can now access the treatment he needs – dabrafenib – on the NHS. After facing multiple surgeries for an aggressive high grade brain tumour, he is now able to go back to school and life live to the full – whilst only needing to take a few tablets.
“It’s no exaggeration to say The Charity’s counselling service saved my life.”
Thanks to your support, our counselling service has delivered more than 13,000 counselling sessions to over 2000 people. People like Carole, who credits the service with helping her get her life back on track after being diagnosed with an incurable brain tumour.
How can I get involved?
Hold your own Twilight Walk
Unite your loved ones at your unique The Twilight Walk Own Walk and help us stride towards a brighter future for everybody affected by a brain tumour.
Order a Better Safe Than Tumour pack
We need your help to spread our signs and symptoms campaign far and wide, so everyone knows they’re better safe than tumour!
The Big Bake 2026
Can you help us accelerate cures for brain tumours by raising lots of dough? Every penny will help us drive much-needed change.
Help us go further, faster for everyone affected by brain tumours
Brain tumours are the biggest cancer killer of under 40s and we need your help to accelerate a cure! Your donation can make a real difference.
Donate now!
£10 could help someone better understand their diagnosis by providing them with a Brain Tumour Information Pack.
£20 could help us accelerate cures for brain tumours by covering the cost of two DNA preservation tubes for use on a clinical trial.
£30 could bring comfort to a child facing a diagnosis by providing them with one of our brainy bags and teddy bear.
Help us campaign for change
We’re calling on policy makers in the Government and the NHS to help us make sure people experiencing symptoms of a brain tumour receive a diagnosis faster.
Join our group of passionate campaigners if you want to be part of our movement and help us create meaningful, lasting change this Brain Tumour Awareness Month!
Share your story
Sharing your story publicly can be powerful way of creating meaningful, lasting change and helping improve outcomes for everyone affected by a brain tumour.
Why we’re campaigning for faster diagnosis
Learn what we mean by “faster diagnosis” and the reasons we’re determined to drive down diagnosis times.
Frequently asked questions
Brain Tumour Awareness Month (BTAM) takes place every March, bringing people from around the world together to raise awareness of the realities of brain tumours. It’s a time to share the signs and symptoms of brain tumours, strive for kinder treatments, and raise our voices for change.
Around 13,000 peolpe are diagnosed with a brain tumour each year in the UK. They’re the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under 40. Yet despite this devastating impact, progress in treatment and research has been slow. Changes in survival rates for adults with a brain tumour have improved little compared with other cancers in over 40 years. This has to change!
We’ve come a long way in the last 30 years, but there’s still much work to be done. Brain tumours must be given the priority they deserve. This Brain Tumour Awareness Month, we’re celebrating 30 years of progress – powered by you – and pledging to go further, faster to create a better future for everyone affected by brain tumours.
Our Better Safe Than Tumour website (bettersafethantumour.com) features an interactive symptom checker, as well as guidance for healthcare professionals, providing resources to better understand and recognise brain tumour signs and symptoms.
If you or a loved one are experiencing two or more of the signs and symptoms, it’s important to speak to your doctor to rule out a brain tumour – because you’re always better safe than tumour.
Faster diagnosis leads to quicker treatments and can have a significant impact on survival rates and quality of life.
Visit bettersafethantumour.com to access the symptom checker, find information about signs and symptoms for babies, children, teens and adults, and order free awareness packs to distribute in your community!
Barriers to Innovation Report
- We’ll launch our new Barriers to Innovation repor
tand hold an event to mark it, to address the challenges preventing faster progress in research into, and treatment of, brain tumours.
The Twilight Walk 2026
- A huge thank you to everyone who’s signed up to stride towards cures with us at The Twilight Walk London, which is now sold out! If you still want to be part of The Twilight Walk, why not sign up as a volunteer or take on your Twilight Own Walk in the month of March?
The Big Bake 2026
- The Big Bake is back and we need you to help us accelerate cures for brain tumours by raising lots of dough! Whether you hold your bake on Friday 27 March and join us for The Biggest Bake, or hold a bake on another date in March, every penny you raise will help us move further, faster.
Celebrating 30 Years of Progress
- Throughout the month, we’ll be shining a light on key progress milestones, celebrating our impact, and sharing the stories of the people who have made it all possible.
Sharing Neil and Angela’s Story
- We’ll be honouring our Founders and telling the story of how Samantha’s legacy has created lasting change for the brain tumour community.