Cancer Research UK announces “largest ever” development investment
pharmafile | December 1, 2016 | News story | Business Services, Manufacturing and Production, Medical Communications, Research and Development, Sales and Marketing | Cancer Research UK
Cancer Research UK (CRUK) is set to inject a total of £226 million into centres across the UK over the next five years in its biggest ever investment into cancer research, according to the organisation.
The move is designed to galvanise advances in cancer research and support clinical trials to develop and deliver better, more effective treatment for sufferers of the disease, while also funding young researchers and PhD students and specialist training for ECMC staff in a bid to build “the next generation of cancer researchers.”
The investment breaks down into £190 million across 13 of its own Cancer Research UK Centres in addition to £36 million into 18 Experimental Cancer Medicine Centres (ECMCs) for adults and a network of Centres for children, a commitment made with the Departments of Health.
CRUK’s own centres conduct translational cancer research driven by teams from universities, research organisations and NHS hospitals, while ECMCs conduct early-stage clinical trials for novel cancer treatments in a bid to accelerate their route to patients.
“Together, these Centres accelerate the discovery and development of better treatments for cancer patients,” stated Sir Harpal Kumar, chief executive at Cancer Research UK (pictured). “They are a unique opportunity for collaboration, both locally across universities and hospitals, and nationally across the network of Centres.
“Cancer Research UK’s projections are that we will reach more than 500,000 new diagnoses of cancer a year in the UK by 2035. By that time, our goal is that three in four people will survive their cancer. Funding these Centres is one of the charity’s most important strategic priorities and one which will help us reach this ambition.
“This huge investment is only made possible through generous donations from the public and the tireless fundraising of our supporters.”
Dr Iain Foulkes, executive director of strategy and research funding at Cancer Research UK, added: “This is the largest investment we have ever made into the Centres and we are incredibly proud of that. It’s also the first time we have co-funded the paediatric ECMC network with the National Institute for Health Research (link is external)and the Chief Scientist Office (link is external), Scotland, which will help boost research to develop smarter, kinder treatments for children.
“This money provides vital infrastructure for bench to bedside research. By strengthening the relationship between scientists and doctors, basic research guides clinical practice as effectively as possible; this is particularly important for hard to treat cancers like pancreatic, oesophageal, lung and brain tumours. By combining expertise and different disciplines, we hope to ignite much needed momentum into research for these cancers.
Matt Fellows
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