01242 535900

Accessibility Tools
Donate
Donate

Research

Research

Our charity’s mission is to enable timely, accurate diagnosis and treatment through sustainable innovation in imaging.

1
research grants awarded by Cobalt in 2026
1
years of funding NHS Breast Cancer Research Nurses
1
research papers co-authored by our team and published since start of 2015
1
translational research scans delivered in 2025
1
scans delivered for 63 clinical trials in the past year

Cobalt's research interests

As a medical charity, we fund, facilitate and deliver research which:

  • Aims to improve healthcare delivery, outcomes and/or patients’ experience
  • Uses or has relevance to medical imaging (MRI, CT, PET/CT, X-ray or Ultrasound)


This includes, but is not limited to:

  • Evaluations of diagnostic technology (including AI or informatics tools)
  • Practice-based research to improve patient experience and clinical pathways
  • Utilising Cobalt’s unique imaging capabilities and expertise to support clinical trials


To be eligible for Cobalt funding or support, research projects/trials must align with our research interests.

Imaging enabling research

Last year we performed 1,136 scans of patients participating in research trials, improving diagnosis and treatment of the conditions shown in this chart.

We also delivered 130 specialist scans, enabling translational research to improve healthcare for people affected by: epilepsy, brain tumours, brain disease, multiple sclerosis, cerebrovascular and musculoskeletal conditions.

Clinical Trials

Our teams provide imaging for research trials – at centres in Cheltenham and Birmingham and using our mobile 3.0T MRI scanners. This opens up opportunities for patients from across the UK to participate in clinical trials, and the findings benefit future patients nationally and internationally.

We deliver imaging for approximately 63 clinical trials each year. The example below shows just 3 of these:

As part of a series of 3 research trials assessing drug treatments for Alzheimer’s Disease, 94 participants came to Cobalt Imaging Centre in Cheltenham over a 5-year period. For each person, we completed a screening MRI, followed by 1 to 5 PET/CT scans, and further MRI appointments.

The ‘amyloid-busting’ drugs being studied in these trials are designed to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s Disease, by breaking down harmful build-ups in the brain of a protein called amyloid.

This map shows where the 94 patients in this example travelled from – to access quality-assured imaging, at our multi-modality site with research-experienced staff.

 

Search through our publications

Most recent:

Apply for a Cobalt research grant

Support for your research project

Find out more about how we could support your research project and how to apply for Cobalt funding by clicking the button below.

Learn more and apply

Research fellowships

Cobalt is launching further funding for research fellows. Information about how to apply will be posted here in 2026.

Contact our research team

Meet our research team

Iain Lyburn
Prof. Iain Lyburn

Research Director and Consultant Radiologist

Read Bio
Zoe Wray
Zoe Wray

MRI Research Radiographer at Cobalt Imaging Centre

Read Bio
Jamie McAllister
Jamie McAllister

PET/CT Research Radiographer at Cobalt Imaging Centre

Read Bio
Ayah Nawwar
Dr. Ayah Nawwar

Consultant Nuclear Medicine Physician

Read Bio
IMG_0775
Richard Wilkes

Research Superintendent at the ITM Imaging Centre

Read Bio
claire
Claire Dowling

Senior Radiographer & Governance Lead at the ITM Imaging Centre

Read Bio

Learn about taking part in research

NIHR

The National Institute for Health and Care Research offer a range of different ways to get involved in research. Click the button to learn more.
Learn more

World Health Organization

Access WHO’s International Clinical Trials Registry Platform by clicking the button.
Learn more

Gloucestershire NHS Trust

Gloucestershire Heath and Care NHS Foundation Trust run an initiative, so people like you can get involved in research. Click below to learn more.
Learn more

Re:Cognition Health

Click below to learn more about participating in Alzheimer’s research.
Learn more

Cobalt research news

Kerry Pawley, Senior Radiographer at Cobalt, pitched her patient service improvement project to the Trustees of Radiology and Oncology Congress at UKIO 2024 and was awarded a £5,000 grant!

Kerry’s pitch ‘More than just a gown — improving the patient experience during breast MRI’ was all about co-creating a gown specifically for breast MRI which meets the requirements of patients whilst also being suitable for MRI.

View 'More than just a gown'

How could we support your research project?

Our charity supports research projects of various sizes in a range of ways.

For example by…

  • Providing funding to subsidise/cover the costs of:
    • Scanning research participants
    • Protected time for healthcare professionals to carry out or supervise research
    • Disseminating research findings to healthcare professionals

  • Granting controlled access for researchers to
    • Pseudonymised imaging data – from patients who gave consent for this
    • Invite our patients to complete a research questionnaire

  • Scanning research trial participants – we invest in high-spec equipment and a team skilled in using complex protocols, to provide expert imaging services for clinical trials

When and how to apply

We are open all year round to enquiries about:

  • Research funding of up to £2,000 per project
  • Supervisory support for research projects
  • Permission to gather/access our imaging data for research purposes
  • Purchasing imaging services for a clinical research trial

Please use the contact form on Cobalt’s research webpage to get in touch about the above.

Twice a year, we invite applications for research grants of £2,000 to £20,000 per project.

  • Winter grant application window: 15th November – 31st December
  • Summer grant application window: 1st May – 15th June
  • Grant award decisions will be communicated to applicants in February and in July/August

To apply for funding in excess of £2,000 please download our Research Project Application Form, type your answers into this fillable PDF, save it, then submit per the instructions on page 1 of the form

Download the application form

Who can apply

We welcome applications/enquiries from all manner of healthcare professionals and academics – for example:

Clinical Scientists, Radiographers, Radiologists, Nurses, Nuclear Medicine Physicians, Neurologists, Surgeons, Cardiologists and Clinical Research Leads/Managers.

Prof. Iain Lyburn

Research Director and Consultant Radiologist

Iain Lyburn is Cobalt’s Research Director, a Consultant Radiologist at Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and a Visiting Professor at Cranfield University. He has co-authored more than 100 peer-reviewed scientific papers on a wide range of topics, focusing more recently on cancer and dementia imaging. He began working at Cobalt in 2003 and has since been a co-applicant on scientific grants totalling over £25million. He is a past President of the UK Radiological Congress, has chaired National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) committees, and was a member of the Administration of Radioactive Substances Act Committee (ARSAC) for 9 years.

Zoe Wray

MRI Research Radiographer

I have worked at Cobalt since February 2006. I started undertaking the scanning of research participants in 2018. In 2020, I took on more of a lead role in the scanning and documentation involved in research.

My interests are looking into the patient experience and using evaluation to help improve this. I am also very interested in breast imaging.

Jamie McAllister

PET/CT Lead Research Radiographer

I set up PET/CT and CT imaging for the research trials we support.  This involves making sure we have the correct paperwork and licences in place to allow us to perform the scans needed. I also handle any related admin and ensure my team is adequately trained to perform the required imaging as some can be complicated! 

We provide PET/CT images for trials involving brain scans. An example of a recent trial was the effect of new drugs used to treat Alzheimer’s Disease.  We also use CT scans for trials too. An example of a recent one involved a body scan to assess disease status for patients trailing new drugs using to fight various cancers.

Dr. Ayah Nawwar

Consultant Nuclear Medicine Physician

Ayah Nawwar is a Consultant Nuclear Medicine Physician at Cobalt Medical Charity and at University Hospitals Bristol & Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW). She is a member of Cobalt’s Research Committee and serves as Research Lead for Radiology at UHBW. Her main research interests are in PET/CT imaging, with a focus on oncology, theranostics, infection and inflammation and the use of artificial intelligence in nuclear medicine. She has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications, presented her work internationally, and received recognition for her scientific contributions. In addition, she is a Lecturer of Nuclear Medicine at Cairo University and an active member of several professional societies, including the European Association of Nuclear Medicine’s Infection and Inflammation Committee.

Richard Wilkes

Research Superintendent - ITM Imaging Centre

Before moving to my current position at the ITM, I was a senior radiographer at Cobalt for 8 years.

The ITM Imaging centre is primarily a research scanner and we are currently involved in global and local research studies which involves cardiac scanning, liver elastography, functional and spectroscopy as well dementia brain imaging. We are partnered with the Institute of Translational Medicine and the University of Birmingham as well as Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham.

We are very proud of what we do here at the ITM and are always happy to talk about it, if anyone is interested please get in contact.

Claire Dowling

Senior Radiographer & Governance Lead - ITM Imaging Centre

I work alongside Richard at the ITM Imaging Centre performing Research & Clinical MRI scans for Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham (QEHB) Trust. We are involved in many exciting global and local research studies to access the effect of drug treatments on oncology patients and those with other diseases. We also perform neurological studies looking into concussion and epilepsy.

I work part time clinically on the unit and part time looking at the Governance on the unit.

Gordan Wilcock

I was the founder Chairman of the UK Alzheimer’s Society and I had been involved in both research and clinical service provision to people with dementia for nearly 50 years. I have held senior academic appointments with a large research component in both Oxford and Bristol, including the development and evaluation of drug treatments, diagnostic tests and provision of care for people with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. 

As well as supporting Cobalt, I am currently involved in other research related roles, including oversight of clinical trials of new medicines, the development of new therapeutic approaches, and I am a Trustee of the UK’s dementia brain bank whose board I chaired not so long ago.