Adam Hayden

Adam Hayden was a philosopher of science, writer and advocate who lived with glioblastoma for nine years. Diagnosed in 2016 while completing a master's degree in philosophy at IU Indianapolis, he treated his own illness as a research question, and became one of the most widely read patient voices in neuro-oncology through his blog Glioblastology and his columns for Cancer Health.

He served on the board of directors of the National Brain Tumor Society, co-founded and led an online brain tumor support community, and co-moderated the monthly #BTSM chat. He was a frequent speaker at medical schools, community centers and research meetings, pressing for more open conversation about palliative care and advance care planning. In 2022 he received the Jan Esenwein Public Service Award from the Society for Neuro-Oncology, and he took part in the American Association for Cancer Research's Scientist↔Survivor Program.

His writing drew a careful line between disease and illness — the biology of a thing and the experience of living it. He died at home in Indianapolis on December 20, 2025, at 43, survived by his wife Whitney and their three sons.’