Headaches are extremely prevalent, painful and disabling neurological conditions, affecting both adults and children. According to the Department of Health, headaches, affect two-thirds of men and over 80% of women. Eight million people in UK get migraine alone, making it the most prevalent, disabling, long term neurological condition. Trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias on the other hand are extremely painful and poorly managed. Cluster headache in particular is one of the most painful conditions amongst men, with similar prevalence of other neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis (0.1-0.3%). Facial pain is complex and often requires a multidisciplinary approach. Headaches can cause substantial personal suffering and impaired quality of life, with a significant financial cost for the country’s economy, arising from direct NHS costs and to a greater extent from the loss of work-time and productivity. Recent studies estimate the cost of headaches for the patients who seek NHS consultation to be ~ £5 billion.

Research in the Andreou Lab tries to understand the basic biology of primary headaches and facial pain, to find out what triggers the attacks, and to develop new therapies both for the acute and preventive treatment of these conditions, with the ultimate goal of improving the quality of life of headache patients.