The UK’s Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, has agreed to meet with a Team GB swimmer who suffers from brain cancer after a plea to bring more clinical trials to the UK.
Archie Goodburn made a heartfelt plea live on BBC News on 4 August, asking the Prime Minister to “give us [brain cancer patients] a chance to fight for our lives”, adding that he would like to see more clinical trials in the UK, citing the US, Australia and China as major hubs for research.
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Archie Goodburn has made an emotional plea to the prime minister.
The Scottish 50m breaststroke record holder was diagnosed with brain cancer two years ago. pic.twitter.com/CnjlDsQfWS
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) August 4, 2026
Goodburn was diagnosed with three large inoperable low-grade oligodendrogliomas in 2024 at the age of 22 and has since passionately advocated for an increased focus on the disease.
In a plea on BBC News, Goodburn said: “Please establish a national brain cancer lead and give us a chance to fight for our lives because the things that patients are going through out there are unbelievable and so unjust.
“There are clinical trials around the world, in the US, in Australia, in China, that could change lives. We are not seeing them in the UK, and it is unfair and unjust.”
The Rare Cancers Bill – led by Scott Arthur MP – became law earlier this year. It aims to incentivise research and investment in the UK for rare cancers. The legislation targets rare and less survivable cancers, defined as affecting no more than 1 in 2,000 people.
The Prime Minister has since agreed to meet with Goodburn.
Servier Pharmaceuticals’ Voranigo (vorasidenib) is the only drug approved in the UK for grade 2 oligodendroglioma with an IDH1 or IDH2 mutation in patients aged 12 and older following surgery. Traditional chemotherapy regimens like PCV (procarbazine, lomustine, and vincristine) or single-agent temozolomide are also medical treatments used for the cancer.
According to GlobalData’s Pharmaceutical Intelligence Center, there are 77 planned and ongoing clinical trials in oligodendroglioma. Just six of these studies have sites in the UK.
GlobalData is the parent company of Clinical Trials Arena.
