Our Team
Meet the people behind The UK Charity for TNBC, a charity focused on improving awareness and access to information for people affected by triple negative breast cancer (TNBC)
Our team is made up of people with personal connections to TNBC, inspired by their experiences to help drive change for others. Through a combination of lived experience and clinical expertise, we help ensure the charity’s work is shaped by real patient needs and supported by evidence-based guidance.
Want to know more about the charity? Learn about What is The UK Charity for TNBC? and What We Do.
Our team at a glance
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Founder & Chairman
Robin Woolcock leads the charity’s direction, represents the voice of TNBC at global events and builds partnerships with organisations and healthcare stakeholders
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Co-founder & Trustee
Dr. Claire Woolcock supports the charity’s governance and helps guide its long-term direction, inspired by her family’s experience of TNBC.
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Medical Advisor & Trustee
Professor Chris Twelves provides clinical guidance for the charity and creates all medical TNBC resources to ensure they are clear, accurate and evidence-based.
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Patient Advisory Panel (PAP) Coordinator
Katherine Gaylard coordinates the Patient Advisory Panel and helps gather TNBC patient feedback to inform the charity’s work and engage with healthcare stakeholders.
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PAP Support Partner & Patient Advocate
Jane Rogerson-Gleave supports the Patient Advisory Panel by helping capture patient feedback, contributing to updates, and encouraging others to share their experiences.
Robin Woolcock
Founder and Chairman
Robin founded The UK Charity for TNBC in memory of his wife, Ruth, after seeing how difficult it was to find clear, TNBC-specific information and support during her TNBC diagnosis and treatment.
He leads the charity’s work to raise awareness, increase access to trusted TNBC-specific information, and improve the patient experience for people affected by TNBC.
What Robin does
➔ Leads the charity’s direction and priorities, working with trustees, volunteers, people with lived experience of TNBC and medical professionals
➔ Coordinates the creation and publication of TNBC information and resources with clinical expert input from Professor Chris Twelves
➔ Builds partnerships with charities and healthcare stakeholders to increase awareness and strengthen support for people with TNBC
➔ Represents the TNBC patient voice with decision-makers and at medical conferences, such as ESMO
➔ Engages with healthcare and industry stakeholders, including pharmaceutical companies, to help drive better care and treatment
Dr. Claire Woolcock
Co-founder and Trustee
Claire co-founded The UK Charity for TNBC alongside her father, Robin Woolcock, following her mother’s journey with TNBC. Wanting to understand more and do something practical to help, Claire helped establish the charity to support others facing TNBC.
As a trustee, Claire helps guide the charity and support its mission. She has also personally fundraised for the charity - including running the London Marathon.
What Claire does
➔ Supports the charity’s governance and long-term direction as a trustee
➔ Helps shape the charity’s work to improve information and recognition for people affected by TNBC
➔ Brings personal experience and motivation to the charity’s mission
Professor Chris Twelves
Medical Advisor and Trustee
Professor Chris Twelves became involved with The UK Charity for TNBC from the start, after Robin approached him for guidance on how the charity could make the biggest difference for people affected by TNBC.
Chris highlighted that what stood out in his own practice caring for people with TNBC was how hard it was for people to find clear, TNBC-specific information. He saw a real gap for both patients and breast care specialists - and his insight helped shape the charity’s focus on better communication and trustworthy, evidence-based resources.
Alongside being the medical advisor and a trustee of The UK Charity for TNBC, Dr. Chris Twelves is a Professor of Clinical Cancer Pharmacology and Oncology at the University of Leeds, Director of the NIHR Leeds Clinical Research Facility at Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust, and a practising breast cancer consultant medical oncologist.
What Chris does
➔ Provides clinical guidance to support the charity’s mission and priorities
➔ Creates all TNBC information and resources published by the charity, ensuring they are accurate and up to date
➔ Supports the charity’s CHAMPION programme for breast care nurse specialists through the production of resources and participation in educational webinars to support nurses caring for patients with TNB
Katherine Gaylard
Katherine was diagnosed with TNBC in 2023. Like many people, when she began researching her diagnosis, she found it hard to find clear information about TNBC. Katherine sought to change that situation.
Katherine became involved with The UK Charity for TNBC after attending a roundtable event and learning about the charity’s work. After meeting Robin, she volunteered to support his mission and help ensure others wouldn’t face the same struggle she had after diagnosis.
Volunteer, Patient Advisory Panel (PAP) Coordinator
Katherine now coordinates The UK Charity for TNBC’s Patient Advisory Panel (PAP) - a group of individuals diagnosed with TNBC who share their experiences and feedback with the charity, helping shape its work, engage with organisations and pharmaceutical companies, and strengthen the patient voice.
What Kathrine does
➔ Oversees and coordinates the charity’s Patient Advisory Panel (PAP)
➔ Encourages people diagnosed with TNBC to join the panel, growing a group the charity can approach for insight
➔ Helps to gather feedback to help the charity represent patients’ needs in conversations with organisations and pharmaceutical companies to drive change
➔ Creates quarterly newsletters to keep panel members informed and involved
Learn more about the Patient Advisory Panel (PAP).
Jane Rogerson-Gleave
Jane was first diagnosed with primary breast cancer (ER positive) in 2017, when she found there was a lot of information available. However, when she was diagnosed with TNBC in 2024, she noticed a stark difference in both the quality and amount of information - and felt her diagnosis wasn’t explained as clearly by her medical team. This experience made Jane realise change was needed, for her and for others facing the same diagnosis.
Jane learned about The UK Charity for TNBC through a colleague whilst working as a patient advocate. She reached out to Robin and has been volunteering to support the Patient Advisory Panel ever since.
Volunteer, Patient Advisory Panel (PAP) Support Partner
What Jane does
➔ Supports the Patient Advisory Panel (PAP), working with the coordinator to capture patient feedback
➔ Contributes to the quarterly PAP newsletter, helping share updates and opportunities
➔ Brings patient advocate experience to help strengthen how the charity represents lived experience