The Inaugural BCOG Annual Conference | 5–6 November 2026 | The Queen's Hotel, Leeds
Professor Jenny Seligmann is a professor of Gastrointestinal and Translational Oncology and Honorary Consultant in Medical Oncology at the University of Leeds, UK. Her research interested are in clinical trials and biomarkers of prediction of response to therapy in colorectal cancer. She is the chief investigator of the foxTROT and ARIEL trials and has an ongoing programme of translational research. She is a member of the ESMO Lower GI Faculty and the UK NCRI Colorectal Cancer Executive Group.
Professor Saunders’ main area of interest is running clinical trials evaluating novel agents with associated response/toxicity biomarkers and radiology (colorectal cancer, anal cancer, stomach chemoradiotherapy and pseudomyxoma). He is a member of a number of National Cancer Research Network (NCRN) CRC committees and works with SchAAR to prepare material for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).
He has written a series of protocols for clinical trials that have been funded, completed and published. He chairs or is a member of a number of trial management groups and data-monitoring committees. He is also an advisor to Beating Bowel Cancer, a charity dedicated to raising awareness of bowel cancer, improving the quality of life of those affected and, ultimately, reducing deaths from bowel cancer.
Dr Rao is a Consultant Medical Oncologist specialising in gastrointestinal cancers and cancers of unknown primary within the Gastrointestinal Unit at the Royal Marsden Hospital.
Dr Rao completed medical training at Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School and specialist oncology training at The Royal Marsden. She undertook laboratory-based research at The Institute of Cancer Research, supported by an academic grant, examining the prognostic and predictive value of genomic profiling of tumour biopsies in oesophago-gastric cancer.
She is The Royal Marsden’s lead for cancers of unknown primary.
Her research interests include clinical trials with novel therapies in GI cancers, and she is the Principal investigator and Chief investigator on a number of national and international trials with novel agents and immunotherapy.
She serves on the committees for the UK National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) Colorectal Cancer and Anal-Rectal Clinical Study Groups and is an active member of the International Rare Cancers Initiative (IRCI). She serves on the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO ) educational faculty for GI Tumours. She sits on a number of national and international trial management groups and data monitoring committees.
Dr Rao is an active contributor to international research through peer review journals and conferences and has given invited lectures globally.
In October 2024, Dr Rao was awarded the title of Reader by the ICR in recognition for her contribution to academic excellence, teaching and leadership.
Professor Graham is a Consultant Medical Oncologist at the Beatson West of Scotland. She treats colon, pancreas and upper GI cancers and her main focus is on maximising patient opportunities to take part in clinical trials.
The GI team consists of 17 consultant oncologists, 7 specialist nurses and a number of Speciality doctors and trainee’s and Prof Graham is the GI team lead. She is a GI trainer for medical oncology Specialist registrars and is lead trainer for CMT’s.
She is the Chief Investigator of PRIMUS 001 which is part of the PRECISION PANC research platform, Arm lead for FOxTROT 4 which explores targeted therapy in BRAF mutant patients within the UK lead FOxTROT Platform, and Principal Investigator on a number of clinical trials spanning Phase I to Phase III.
Early in her consultant career she was awarded an NRS fellowship to support her work in clinical trials and she continues as a Senior Investigator and Honorary Professor at the University of Glasgow.
Prof Graham has been integral to a number of service developments within the UK including the introduction of RAS, BRAF, MSI and DPYD testing in the West of Scotland. She is on the medical advisory board of a number of charities including Bowel Cancer UK. She supports a number of trial management groups and DMEC’s.
Prof Graham is a Specialist advisor to the SMC including the PACE process and is clinical lead for the West of Scotland Colorectal MCN. She co-leads the Glasgow Colorectal Collaborative initiative along with Professor Owen Sansom – a group whose ultimate aim is to bring together preclinical, translational and clinical colorectal researchers. Prof Graham previously chaired the adjuvant and advanced subgroup of the NCRI colorectal group were she had an active role in ensuring the colorectal portfolio had as many trials as possible for patients across the spectrum of the disease.
Richard Wilson trained in oncology in N. Ireland and in the National Cancer Institute in the USA, including doctoral research in colorectal cancer. He then worked as an academic oncologist in Belfast and set up the first early phase cancer clinical trials programme on the island of Ireland, and set up the regional N. Ireland Cancer Trials Network, and was Clinical Lead of the Belfast Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre. Richard now works in the University of Glasgow where he is Professor of Gastrointestinal Oncology and an Honorary Consultant in the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre. He works as a medical oncologist in lower gastrointestinal cancer and experimental cancer medicine and conducts clinical and translational research in these diseases. He has been Chief Investigator on many local, national and international cancer clinical trials in both early and late phase settings. He is passionate about improving outcomes for cancer patients through research and bringing discovery science into the clinic, and in training the next generation of cancer researchers and clinicians.
Richard is Professor of Clinical Trials at Cardiff University and holds several leadership roles in cancer research and clinical practice. He is Lead for the Wales Tackling Cancer Through Research Initiative, Clinical Director of the Centre for Trials Research (CTR)—a large UKCRC-accredited Clinical Trials Unit—Clinical Director of the Wales Cancer Biobank, and Honorary Consultant Clinical Oncologist at Velindre Cancer Centre and Cardiff & Vales University Health Board.
Through the Tackling Cancer Through Research Initiative, Richard works across health boards, trusts, and disciplines to foster a vibrant culture of clinical research engagement and delivery, with the aim of improving cancer care in Wales. As Clinical Director of the CTR, he leads a team of 160 staff delivering studies and trials both in the UK and internationally, in close collaboration with the NHS, industry, and academic partners. The CTR’s work spans four divisions: Cancer, Infections/Inflammatory/Immunological Disorders (3Is), Population Health, and Brain Health.
Richard’s clinical practice and research focus on lower gastrointestinal cancers. He chairs the British Colorectal Oncology Group and represents both this group and Wales on the United Kingdom Collaboration on Cancer Clinical Research (UK3CR). He is actively involved in national and international organisations, including the International Rare Cancer Initiative (IRCI, for anal cancer), the ARCAD Foundation executive, and the European Gastro-Intestinal Cancer Collaboration (ENGIC).
As Chief Investigator on multiple lower gastrointestinal cancer trials, Richard is a strong advocate for nurturing future academics within the NHS and universities, mentoring numerous early-career researchers. He oversees collaborative translational research in phase II and III colorectal cancer studies and supervises PhD students across disciplines, including engineering, to drive innovation and unlock new approaches in cancer care.
An academic clinician committed to innovation, Richard champions the rapid implementation of best practice informed by research within the NHS. He serves on the executive of the UK Oncology Forum, helping grow this national free educational conference year on year, providing updates on best practice and challenging perceptions in cancer research and care.
Richard also has a keen interest in global health, shaped by his cancer work in Uganda and Sierra Leone, and is a strong advocate for inclusivity in research and healthcare.