Cancer

Starving cancer cells of specific nutrients can slow tumour growth and sharpen the effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy – now, startup Faeth Therapeutics is creating precision diets which can enhance cancer treatments. We spoke with Professor Oliver Maddocks to find out how the startup came about, and how hacking cancer metabolism with diet could help

When cancer is diagnosed, doctors will carry out tests to determine how big the tumour is, and whether it has spread into any other tissues or parts of the body. Once they know that information, they can assign the cancer a stage. Typically, this ranges from stage 1, meaning the cancer is small and hasn’t

This article follows on from part one of the women in science pioneers series, in which we celebrate women who have contributed to impactful discoveries in the field of cancer research. In this second article, we’re celebrating some more pioneering women who have helped to improve outcomes for people with cancer and paved the way

Research integrity training is becoming ubiquitous – but how it’s delivered, and who to, varies incredibly. That is a problem, says Dr Catherine Winchester in the latest of our series focussing on research integrity. So, how can we embed training like this in a systematic way? Promoting and supporting research integrity at an organisational level

©Shutterstock/William Perugini We monitor cancer statistics to better understand the disease. They show us the progress we’ve made to help more people survive cancer, and they help us focus our work to keep that progress going. But progress isn’t always linear. Sometimes the statistics reveal unexpected challenges, like the rising number of cancer cases in

The beginning of 2023 has brought exciting news for the lymphedema community. The Lymphedema Treatment Act (LTA), first introduced as a bill in Congress in 2010, was finally passed into law on December 23, 2022. This landmark legislation will result in Medicare coverage for lymphedema compression supplies starting January 1, 2024. Why is the LTA

A slight change to the way doctors give chemotherapy could help thousands of people with colon cancer. ©Patrick Harrison 2019 “Timing is everything when it comes to treating colon cancer,” says Matthew Seymour, Professor of Gastrointestinal Cancer Research at the University of Leeds. He knows that’s much more than just a phrase. Seymour helped run

Historically, science has never been an easy place for women to work. Gender stereotypes, lack of role models and male dominated cultures have made it harder for women to succeed in the field, to give just a few examples. And those that do make it tend not to receive the recognition they deserve. While some

We’re investing £37.5 million over the next five years to fund seven UK clinical trials units (CTUs). From October 2023 the funding will enable clinical teams to deliver innovative and high impact research that improves the care and outcomes for people affected by cancer across the UK and globally. The units will be in the

As genetic screening becomes routine for cancer detection and treatment, we need to ensure this can be delivered at scale and quickly within a national health system. Here, Don White takes us through this challenge and looks at the success of CRUK’s Stratified Medicine Programme 2… It’s clear genomics will be at the heart of

Bob Riter I’d like to give myself a magic wand at this time of the year to grant wishes to those affected by cancer. This was a wish list I put together in 2015, yet it is still relevant. Maybe this will be the year my wishes come true! Here are my wishes for the

The UK government is almost a decade behind achieving its target for England to be smokefree by 2030, a new report published by Cancer Research UK reveals. The report warns that, if recent trends continue, the target will now not be met until 2039. This is despite repeated warnings from the charity that data up

On a recent journey home from school, my son’s usual updates on his least favourite teacher, the canteen food and the lunchtime football match were replaced. Instead, he asked me about smoking, after noticing some older, ‘cooler’ kids puffing on cigarettes outside the gates. Working for a cancer charity, my knee-jerk response has been to

This year we have seen three different Prime Ministers and UK governments. Amongst the political turbulence, we’ve accomplished a lot in cancer policy and campaigning in all four nations of the UK and globally. From research and prevention to diagnosis, we’ve been advocating for change to beat cancer. Here are some highlights. A group of

One of the best ways to help people survive cancer is to find it early. That’s why NHS England has a target of diagnosing 75% of cancer cases in stage 1 or 2 by 2028. Unfortunately – despite the tireless work of NHS staff, as well as a range of national strategies and initiatives –

Generations of scientists have dedicated their lives to understanding and treating cancer, often funded by us at Cancer Research UK, a charity that has spent more than a century driving progress for patients  Written by David Cox for Guardian Labs Mick Bulbrook, left, who pioneered the use of the breast cancer drug tamoxifen, at the Imperial

This year, we’ve been celebrating our 20th anniversary. And as part of that, we’re looking back at the influence and involvement we’ve had in reducing cancer death rates. Since we were founded in February 2002, we’ve invested £5.4 billion into life-changing research. And that’s translated into some incredible results. Overall, cancer death rates have decreased

We often say people are born to do something, or born to be something, and Maria Lawal will tell you she was born to be an athlete. As a schoolgirl she played basketball and netball, and ran long jump and circuit, until one day she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a form of bone cancer, when

The path to policy change is rarely straightforward. The UK Government’s decision last week to further delay (until October 2025) implementing legislation to restrict junk food advertising on TV and online is just the most recent example. That doesn’t stop this particular setback hurting – as it slows down vital progress towards reducing the number

The Antibody Alliance Laboratory – a collaboration between Cancer Research UK and AstraZeneca – combines academic rigour with agile bioengineering to push forward antibody discovery projects. Here we explore how the partnership is enabling one researcher’s career long mission to better the lives of childhood brain cancer patients… The course of Richard Gilbertson’s career was

The holidays can be very stressful – particularly when you are already dealing with a cancer diagnosis or are the caregiver for someone with cancer.  Perhaps you know someone in such a situation. Whether they are a family member, good friend, or just the woman down the street you always pass when walking the dog,

Our 20th anniversary year has been about much more than looking back. 2022 has been full of research and advances that are worth celebrating in themselves.  Read on to find out what our scientists have been working on this year, and to learn more about the people that make their discoveries possible. A tumour model

Proton Beam Therapy Centre at The Christie The Taylor Family Foundation has donated £2.1m to support the Cancer Research UK PROTIS clinical trial, a study that will investigate the use of proton beam therapy at two state of the art NHS facilities, located at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester and University College Hospitals

Left to right: Emma Colliver, Dr William Hill and Dr Emilia Lim If you’ve been keeping up to date with our news over the last few years, you’ve probably heard of TRACERx. For those of you that haven’t, TRACERx is our flagship lung cancer study. The largest and most detailed genetic study of its kind

Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK Flashback to February 4th, the start of Cancer Research UK’s 20th anniversary year. The then Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Sajid Javid, declared a ‘War on Cancer’, committing to publish a 10-year plan, which promised to

This year we’ve been celebrating Cancer Research UK’s 20th year. And while it might be the charity’s 20th anniversary, many of us research nurses have been working in cancer research for longer. Research nurses work in clinical trials. We play a vital role in making sure patients are safe and cared for whilst also ensuring

The next in our series focussing on research integrity finds Dr Andrew Porter exploring the dangers of publishing with a limited methods section, asking how we can reverse this trend and, incredibly, taking a lesson from the Great British Bake Off… This may strike you as an odd way to start a column about research

Loren (left) and Dinny (right), who both lost their voices during their cancer treatment Human beings face many of their worst demons by expressing their emotions and sharing their experiences with others. For most patients, speaking out about a cancer diagnosis and voicing worries, fears, highs and lows, is an important way of dealing with