A Significant Investment in Ireland’s Health Research Future
Four researchers at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, home to the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, have secured more than €1.2 million in health funding through the latest round of the Health Research Charities Ireland (HRCI) and Health Research Board (HRB) Joint Funding Scheme. Announced on 16 September 2026, the awards form part of a €3.1 million national investment covering 12 health research projects, with eight HRCI member charities participating in this funding round.
The RCSI-led projects will advance research into earlier cancer diagnosis, brain metastases, and epilepsy — areas where improved detection and personalised treatment can meaningfully change patient outcomes. What distinguishes this scheme from many others is its structure: patients and health research charities play a direct role in shaping research priorities, ensuring that funded work addresses the questions that matter most to people living with these conditions.
For prospective researchers, clinicians, and students evaluating where to study or work in Ireland, the announcement is a clear signal of RCSI’s research strength and its commitment to patient-focused science. If you are considering a future in health research, explore RCSI’s postgraduate research and innovation programmes to see how your career could contribute to work of this scale.
Understanding the HRCI-HRB Joint Funding Scheme
The HRCI-HRB Joint Funding Scheme is now in its thirteenth round. Since 2006, the partnership has supported 177 research projects with more than €31 million in funding, making it one of the most consistent and impactful co-funding mechanisms in Irish health research. The model pairs government investment, administered through the HRB, with the priorities and co-funding of Irish health research charities convened under HRCI.
Why Charity and Government Co-Funding Matters
Co-funded schemes like this one serve several purposes. They direct resources toward conditions represented by charities — often rare diseases or patient populations that are underserved by commercial research pipelines. They also create accountability to patients: because charities help select funded projects, the research questions are grounded in real clinical need and lived experience rather than purely academic interest.
For researchers, the scheme offers more than money. Participation provides access to charity networks, patient communities, and dissemination channels that can accelerate the translation of findings into clinical practice. For Ireland’s wider health system, it builds durable research capacity in areas such as cancer research, neurology, and primary care diagnostics.
The Four RCSI-Led Projects and Their Goals
The latest awards to RCSI researchers span colorectal cancer screening, the biology of brain metastases, and two distinct epilepsy-focused studies. Each project pairs a clearly defined clinical problem with a practical methodological approach and a direct line back to patient priorities.
YO-FIT: Detecting Colorectal Cancer Earlier in Younger Adults
Professor Patrick Redmond, Associate Professor at the Department of General Practice, has been awarded €344,945 for the YO-FIT project. The research will assess whether a simple stool test, known as a FIT (faecal immunochemical test), accessed directly through primary care, can help identify possible colorectal cancer earlier in younger adults.
The clinical context is important. Population screening programmes typically target older age groups, yet colorectal cancer in younger adults has drawn growing attention internationally. YO-FIT examines how general practice — often the first point of contact for symptomatic patients — could use a low-cost, non-invasive test to triage younger patients more effectively, potentially catching cancers at earlier and more treatable stages.
Studying the Shared Biology of Brain Metastases
Dr Damir Varešlija, Senior Lecturer at the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, has been awarded €343,986 to investigate the biological processes shared by cancers that spread to the brain. Brain metastases are a leading cause of illness and death among patients with advanced cancers, yet treatment options remain limited.
By identifying processes common to multiple cancer types that metastasise to the brain, the project aims to uncover new opportunities for earlier detection and to develop therapeutic strategies that could work across several cancers at once. This cross-cancer approach reflects a broader shift in cancer research: targeting shared mechanisms rather than studying each tumour type in isolation.
CONTACTS: Combining Brain Recordings with Molecular Data in Epilepsy
Professor David Henshall, Professor of Molecular Physiology and Neuroscience and Director of the FutureNeuro research centre, has been awarded €271,259 for the CONTACTS project. The research will combine detailed recordings of brain activity with molecular information to build a fuller picture of how epilepsy develops and progresses.
Epilepsy affects tens of thousands of people in Ireland, and a significant proportion of patients do not achieve seizure control with existing medications. Studies like CONTACTS aim to close that gap by revealing the molecular events that accompany abnormal brain activity — knowledge that could support earlier diagnosis and more precise, effective treatments.
DS-COMBINE: Personalised Approaches to Dravet Syndrome Care
Dr Cristina Ruedell Reschke, Senior Lecturer in the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences and a FutureNeuro investigator, has been awarded €276,000 for the DS-COMBINE project. The study will investigate how factors including the body’s 24-hour rhythms could be used to develop more personalised approaches to care for adults with Dravet syndrome, a rare and severe form of epilepsy.
Because Dravet syndrome is rare, research into the condition often struggles to attract funding through conventional channels. Charity-informed schemes such as the HRCI-HRB partnership are precisely the mechanism that allows these patient communities to drive research forward, which makes the involvement of epilepsy charities in this round especially significant.
Together, these four projects show how targeted health funding moves promising ideas — from a primary care stool test to molecular neurology — closer to clinical impact. Have questions about how projects like these are selected and funded? Write to us in the comments or explore our related articles on Irish health research.
Patient-Focused Research as a Guiding Principle
Professor Fergal O’Brien, Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation at RCSI, highlighted that the HRCI-HRB partnership ensures patients and health research charities have a strong voice in shaping research priorities. He noted that the strong representation of RCSI researchers in this funding round reflects the university’s commitment to patient-focused research, from improving the early detection of cancer to developing more personalised approaches to neurological conditions.
This philosophy has practical consequences. Projects designed around patient priorities are more likely to recruit participants, produce findings that clinicians will actually use, and deliver measurable improvements in quality of life. For funders, patient involvement acts as a safeguard against research that is technically interesting but clinically irrelevant.
What This Funding Round Means for Ireland
The announcement carries implications for several audiences across the Irish health and research landscape:
- Patients and families: The funded projects target earlier diagnosis and better management of conditions — colorectal cancer, brain metastases, epilepsy, and Dravet syndrome — where timely intervention changes outcomes.
- Researchers: The scheme demonstrates the value of aligning proposals with charity priorities and setting out clear pathways to patient benefit.
- Charities: Co-funding multiplies the impact of every euro raised by supporters, translating donations into structured, peer-reviewed research.
- Students and early-career scientists: A robust funding ecosystem signals strong, long-term career prospects in Ireland’s health research sector.
Building a Research Career at RCSI
For readers inspired by this funding round, several practical routes lead into health research in Ireland. RCSI offers structured PhD and postgraduate research opportunities across its schools, alongside taught master’s programmes and continuing professional development courses for practising clinicians. Early engagement matters: attending research seminars, connecting with principal investigators, and gaining hands-on experience in laboratory or clinical settings all strengthen future funding applications and career progression.
Aspiring researchers should also study how successful grants are framed. Each of the awarded RCSI projects pairs a concrete clinical problem with a testable approach and an explicit connection to patient priorities — a template worth emulating in your own applications. If you are ready to take the next step, submit your application for RCSI’s postgraduate research programmes, or schedule a consultation with the admissions team to discuss which route suits your background and goals.
The Broader Significance of This Health Funding Announcement
The €1.2 million awarded to RCSI researchers is more than a headline figure. It represents targeted investment in earlier cancer diagnosis, a deeper understanding of brain metastases, and improved care for people living with epilepsy and Dravet syndrome. It also reinforces Ireland’s standing as a country where patient-focused health research is structured, funded, and delivered through proven mechanisms.
With 177 projects and more than €31 million invested since 2006, the HRCI-HRB Joint Funding Scheme has demonstrated its durability and impact across thirteen rounds. The results of these latest RCSI projects will be worth following closely, both for their scientific contributions and for what they reveal about the future of collaborative health funding in Ireland. Share your thoughts or experiences with health research in the comments below, and explore our related articles for further reading on cancer research and health funding developments.
