Meet the Team

Gill Johnston

Founder and Trustee

My son, Anthony, was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in April 2001. He started fundraising whilst going through his treatment. Sadly he lost his battle in October 2002. After his death, I continued with his fundraising and registered the Anthony Pilcher Bone Cancer Trust.

I am incredibly proud to also be a founder and active trustee of the Bone Cancer Research Trust. Anthony wanted to ensure that at some stage in the future, children and young adults would have earlier diagnosis, better drugs and improved survival rates. I will endeavour to carry out his wishes (and mine) to the best possible end.

Professor Bernadette Brennan

Trustee

I am a Professor in Paediatric Oncology in Manchester with a long clinical practice and research profile in bone tumours, and lead the front line trial in the UK and Europe in Ewing sarcoma. I wanted to become a trustee for BCRT to allow my skills and experience in bone tumour research to advance the goals of BCRT. I also felt it was important to use these skills for the important shared goal of myself and BCRT to improve outcomes in bone cancer.

Bernadette is the Bone Cancer Research Trust's lead trustee for safeguarding.

Mr Jonathan Stevenson

Trustee

Jonathan is a specialist in orthopaedic oncology at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital, Birmingham. He qualified at the University of Birmingham in 2005, gained his specialist training at the Robert Jones & Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital, Oswestry and began working at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust in 2015. He is a Senior Honorary Clinical Lecturer in Orthopaedics at Aston University. He has been awarded multiple national research prizes in orthopaedic oncology including the British Orthopaedic Association International travelling fellowship award in 2014, visiting the Tata Memorial hospital in Mumbai and the British Orthopaedic Oncology Society European travelling fellowship award in 2015.

"I joined as a Trustee for BCRT in 2018 to channel my energy and enthusiasm into a growing charity that is supporting research nationally to identify, prevent, treat and support children and adults in bone tumours so that we see improved outcomes as soon as possible"

Professor Alison Gartland

Chair of Trustees

I am a Professor of Bone and Cancer Biology at The University of Sheffield, and have been involved in primary bone cancer research for nearly 20 years. I have witnessed the Bone Cancer Research Trust grow from a relatively unheard charity to the UK’s leading charity that it is today. I have also been involved with the Bone Cancer Research Trust activities for the past 5 years or so. In this time, I have become steadily more involved with the charity supporting awareness events from giving lab tours, to presenting at the patient conferences to attending Rock festivals! Whilst I am passionate about raising awareness of primary bone cancer wherever and whenever I can, I believe that I have a lot more skills and experiences that I can offer to the charity to help deliver the existing strategic upon objectives, as well as shaping the strategic direction for the future.

In addition to my role as a research lab head, my current position involves the education of Medical Students at The University of Sheffield. Knowledge of the current curriculum and teaching priorities for the doctors of the future is something that I can also bring to the role of Trustee, and which will help to inform strategic objectives in raising awareness of primary bone cancer amongst medical students and the doctors of the future. On a personal level, from the projects I have been involved with, the patients I have met along the way and more recently experiencing the diagnosis and treatment of a very close family friend, I feel that I have a heightened understanding of what it means to live with bone cancer for patients and their families. Over the years of being involved with the Bone Cancer Research Trust I have come to know the staff, supporters and patients – and I feel I have a connection with them that really just makes me want to give more back to this amazing charity! I feel that in being Chair of Trustees I can do just that and hopefully make a real difference to those living with and beyond primary bone cancer.

Charlene Young

Trustee

Charlene was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma at 27 years old in 2011. Over the last few years, she has used her lived experience and passion through her own health inequalities to inform, support and campaign for changes in cancer care. Charlene strongly believes in advocating for groups that are underrepresented and has also been featured in multiple health and awareness campaigns on TV and Billboards. She sits on multiple boards and panels for charities, hospitals, and health organisations where she consults and collaborates with researchers and medical teams to inform and improve patient care.

Charlene is also a Patient Advisory Board Member and Grant Reviewer for Osteosarcoma Now and a Patient Representative for FOSTER (Fight Osteosarcoma Through European Research) and the EEC (Euro Ewing Consortium). In 2021 she was nominated for a Patient Ambassador Award for her contribution to improving the outreach of the BCRT’s Support & Information service to all communities. In 2023 Charlene was awarded Inspirational Mother of The Year and joined the Board of Trustees for the Bone Cancer Research Trust. You can read Charlene’s story here

Mike Ashton

Trustee

Our son Frank was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma in April 2016. Frank died in February 2019 at the age of 14. I’ve experienced at first hand the devastating consequences of this disease but also been inspired by the courage of Frank and all those individuals and their families who find themselves in similar circumstances.

Following a long career in marketing and advertising I became a trustee of BCRT to provide support to the vital effort to change the status quo in the awareness, research funding and treatment of bone cancer.

Andrew Booth

Trustee

Andrew is a seasoned technology executive with over 17 years of experience in the commercial tech industry. For the past six years, he has worked for a Financial Regulatory Technology business, currently holding the role of Vice President of Technology, with responsibility for not only leadership and traditional technology but also Information Security and Technical Governance. Andrew has been a trustee of BCRT since April 2023 and joined the board to share his many years of leadership experience and knowledge of governance and compliance to help further the charity’s goals.

Anthea Martin

Trustee

I’m incredibly proud to have joined Team Bones as a Trustee in 2023. I have personal experience of bone cancer, having been diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma when I was 14. This drove me on to pursue a career in medical research, and I completed a PhD in cancer biology. I then moved into medical and science writing, which led me to working in the charity sector. After a stint as a science communicator in a large cancer charity, I moved into fundraising. As well as the main trustee board, I sit on the Fundraising sub-committee.

My main driver for joining the trustee board is that I want more people to have the opportunities I’ve had to survive and thrive after a bone cancer diagnosis. BCRT has made such a difference for people with bone cancer already, and I’m really excited about what more we can achieve in the next few years.

Francesca Robinson

Trustee

Frankie joined as a trustee in September 2023, having known about BCRT for several years through the Al Dawson Special Fund. Cancer has been prevalent in Francesca’s life, after losing her step mum to secondary breast cancer in 2004 and has given her an understanding of how cancer can affect families.

She has over 14 years’ experience in PR and Marketing, having worked in a variety of roles both client side and in agencies. Before joining BCRT, Frankie served as a Governor on four secondary school for over eight years with a special focus on Safeguarding.

Frankie is excited to bring her experience and knowledge in PR and marketing to the charity.

David Elston

Trustee

David is a consultant corporate lawyer who has previously worked as an in-house lawyer in various areas of business including financial services, engineering ad strategy, and is currently working for a medical charity. He has extensive experience as a charity trustee in character education and in environmental research and development, and has been involved in charity governance and law. His family lost a close friend of one of his children through bone cancer some years ago and, like most of us, has known many others suffering, and often recovering, from cancer in its various forms. David feels strongly that his past experience and career can be a useful support to the trustees and greatly enjoys working with, and learning a huge amount from, the BCRT team and his fellow trustees. David and his wife live in the country in North Yorkshire and enjoy walking and exploring the Dales and moorland.

Margaret Moore OBE

Trustee

Margaret is a solicitor by profession. She practiced commercial and competition law in the City of London for over 30 years. Since her retirement in 2012, she has volunteered as a trustee of a variety of charities (including Sue Ryder, Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby and the Royal Voluntary Service) and as a school governor. She is Vice Chair of the Fundraising Regulator. She became a member of BCRT's Patient and Public Involvement Panel, and then a trustee of the Bone Cancer Research Trust following the death of her nephew, Sam, from Ewing Sarcoma in May 2020.