A neurosurgeon from Cambridge has won a prestigious honour which will help him progress his work to find a cure for brain tumours.

Dr Chao Li has been named Young Investigator of the Year by the British Neuro-Oncology Society (BNOS). He was awarded the £1,000 prize, which is jointly sponsored by the charity Brain Tumour Research and BNOS, as scientists at the forefront of global research into the disease met in Liverpool for the annual BNOS conference this month.

Neurosurgeon Dr Li is a fellow in clinical neurosciences at the University of Cambridge. His research is focused on characterising brain tumours using advanced neuroimaging and artificial intelligence (AI), particularly focused on how AI can bridge the gap between model development and real-world clinical application.

Dr Li said: 

“I am so honoured to have my work recognised by the panel and the research community. My passion is in image-based artificial intelligence and data science research. Many hours have gone into learning new techniques and developing research expertise and it means so much that the direction I am so passionate about is also recognised by our colleagues. I am thrilled and encouraged to further develop my research to benefit brain tumour patients.”

Dr Li was selected by a BNOS review panel. Dr Karen Noble, Director of Research, Policy and Innovation at Brain Tumour Research said: 

“The work being conducted by Dr Li is extremely exciting and we are proud to be able to support him with the Young Investigator Award.

“Brain tumours kill more children and adults under the age of 40 than any other cancer, so this area of research has very real potential impact for patients. Working together with charities and the Government, we are leading the way in enhancing both research and clinical practice.”