Who we are

TN Institute team

The TN Institute team brings together clinical leadership, drug development expertise, research excellence, patient insight and life sciences investment experience to improve the lives of people living with trigeminal neuralgia and chronic pain.

Clinical and scientific leadership

Joanna Zakrzewska provides internationally recognised clinical and academic leadership in trigeminal neuralgia. Based on her research and clinical work for 30 years, she has developed a care pathway for patients which the TN institute would like to see adopted throughout the United Kingdom. She has written six books, contributed chapters to 29 books, published more than 200 peer-reviewed papers, and lectured in over 30 countries. She has been rated the top research expert in trigeminal neuralgia worldwide and has worked extensively to raise awareness of TN through collaborations with drug companies, patient support groups (co –founded the UK one), co-writers, UK Parliament, artists and academic trusts.

Drug development and translational expertise

Simon Tate contributes drug development and translational research experience, with over 35 years of experience in the life sciences sector. While leading R&D at Convergence Pharmaceuticals, he worked with Joanna Zakrzewska to take a potential new treatment for TN through clinical trials. The study, which showed clinical benefit for TN patients, was published in Lancet Neurology.

Ann Hayes adds deep neuroscience R&D and digital health experience. She worked with Simon Tate for many years at GlaxoSmithKline while leading Neuroscience R&D and bringing new drugs through the pipeline for chronic pain, neurology and psychiatry indications. Her work in digital health is particularly relevant to the TN Institute’s aims to improve mental health for people living with TN, and she has been leading the Institute’s health economic analysis initiative with Irene Matucci.

Research expertise and lived experience

Graeme Henderson brings pharmacology expertise and personal insight into related pain conditions. He is Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Bristol and a former President of the British Pharmacological Society, where he and Ann Hayes have interacted over several decades. His scientific career has focused on the mechanisms of action of opioid drugs, and his recent diagnosis of SUNA (Short-lasting Unilateral Neuralgiform Headache), a condition with overlapping symptoms and characteristics with TN, adds further relevance to the team’s work.

Adrian Hale contributes direct patient experience and long-standing advocacy leadership. Diagnosed with trigeminal neuralgia in 2006, he has worked closely with Joanna Zakrzewska for many years, including during his tenure as Chairman of the Trigeminal Neuralgia Association UK from 2015 to 2020. He continues to collaborate with Joanna on the development of screening tools for TN patients.

Investment and strategic perspective

Irene Matucci contributes life sciences investment, company creation and strategic consulting experience. She has worked with Simon Tate for several years as an investor in, and founder of, companies in neuroscience therapeutics and related areas. Her strategic and commercial perspective strengthens the TN Institute’s ability to connect clinical and scientific opportunity with impact for patients.