Dr. Freddie Bray is a globally recognized authority in cancer surveillance and epidemiological research. He currently serves as Branch Head of the Cancer Surveillance Branch at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in Lyon, France, a position he has held since July 2014. With an academic foundation in statistical sciences, he earned his BSc (Hons) in Statistics from the University of Aberdeen, followed by an MSc in Medical Statistics from the University of Leicester, and completed his PhD in Epidemiology from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Prior to his leadership role at IARC, Dr. Bray served as Deputy Section Head of the Section of Cancer Information from 2010 to 2014 and conducted significant research at the Institute of Population-Based Cancer Research in Oslo, Norway.
Dr. Bray specializes in estimating global cancer burden and analyzing time trends to predict future cancer patterns across different populations and development stages. His groundbreaking work on the GLOBOCAN project has produced some of the most influential publications in cancer epidemiology, including the highly cited 2021 paper Global Cancer Statistics 2020 which has garnered over 90,000 citations. He has pioneered methodologies for linking cancer incidence and mortality data with socioeconomic development indicators, creating a robust framework for understanding global cancer patterns. His research has fundamentally transformed how the international community monitors and responds to the growing cancer burden, particularly in resource-limited settings.
As the coordinator of the Global Initiative for Cancer Registry Development (GICR), Dr. Bray has been instrumental in expanding high-quality cancer surveillance systems across low and middle-income countries through a network of regional hubs. His leadership was recognized with the prestigious UICC Outstanding Contribution to Cancer Control Award in 2023 for his transformative work in strengthening global cancer data infrastructure. Dr. Bray actively advocates for stronger international collaboration with the World Health Organization to develop effective data and surveillance policies that inform national cancer control plans. His ongoing research focuses on understanding the relationship between cancer and human development, creating global indices that measure socioeconomic inequality in cancer burden to guide targeted interventions and narrow the cancer equity gap worldwide.
