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  • Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health
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  • Cancer
  • Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health
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Cancer stories

Explore how Manchester’s expertise is combating cancer in more powerful ways than ever.

Our researchers and clinicians dedicate their careers to the prevention and treatment of cancer, and the care of patients.

Their individual and collective quests for breakthroughs that will benefit society are the inspiration behind this collection of articles.

  • More about cancer research in Manchester

Drawn from our ‘Cancer Futures’ magazine, these features reflect Manchester’s breadth and depth of expertise from the laboratory to the bedside. They will give you a snapshot of our incredible cancer research activity and the people behind it.

You can also download the latest (PDF 21.1MB) and previous editions of the Cancer Futures magazine.

Cancer Futures, issue 2

Previous issue

Cancer Futures, issue 1 (PDF 15.2MB)


Our stories

To explore our features, use the filters below.

Stories

  • Dr Kiran Batta and Dr Dan Wiseman outside the Manchester Cancer Research Centre.

    Collaborating for a cure for a rare form of leukaemia

    A dynamic collaboration between Dr Dan Wiseman, a consultant haematologist, and Dr Kiran Batta, a basic biologist, is changing the narrative around chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia (CMML).

    Read more

  • Dr Natalie Cook.

    From diagnosis to discovery: transforming care for cancer of unknown primary

    A collaboration with the CRUK National Biomarker Centre could help patients diagnosed with cancer of unknown primary (CUP).

    Read more

  • A male African farmer.

    Sharing oesophageal cancer lessons globally

    Manchester has formed a collaboration with the Kenyatta University Teaching, Referral and Research Hospital (KUTRRH) focused on improving oesophageal cancer survival.

    Read more

  • An African woman and two young boys smiling at a tablet screen.

    Engaging with local communities to improve cancer care in Kenya

    Manchester researchers are forging partnerships in East Africa to better understand local populations and develop interventions to reduce inequalities in cancer care.

    Read more

  • Three Black women smiling at a mobile phone screen.

    A game-changing approach for the treatment of early-stage cervical cancer

    University researchers are pioneering a new topical treatment for cervical cancer and forming global partnerships to help more women in developing countries survive the disease.

    Read more

  • President Uhuru Kenyatta greets patients at a cancer centre in Mombasa, Kenya.

    Building cancer partnerships in Kenya

    Manchester's partnership with the Kenyan government aims to help uplift the healthcare practices in the country based on models developed in Greater Manchester.

    Read more

  • A Black male patient sitting down with a healthcare professional behind him.

    Bringing greater ethnic equality to prostate cancer research

    Manchester researchers apply their world-leading genetic and genomic expertise to study the differences in prostate cancer among ethnic groups to deliver more tailored, targeted treatment.

    Read more

  • The roofs of houses against the backdrop of skyscrapers in a South American city.

    Improving treatment standards for rarer cancers

    Manchester research has helped grow the evidence base for biliary tract cancers and set international treatment standards that have improved survival rates.

    Read more

  • Vaskar Saha high fiving a young boy.

    Levelling access to cancer services in India

    Researchers at Manchester have created a dedicated cancer hospital and research centre in India to help standardise services and deliver more effective treatment solutions for patients.

    Read more

  • The back of a farmer holding a stick.

    Spotlight on Kenya

    Collaborations between experts in Kenya and Manchester are working to address key health issues in the African country, particularly in the area of cancer.

    Read more

  • Professor Emma Crosbie

    Changing lives and national policy

    Professor Emma Crosbie discusses research into the link between Lynch syndrome and womb cancer, and how this has changed NICE guidance on testing for the syndrome.

    Read more

  • Professor Kostas Kostarelos

    Using graphene to tackle cancer

    Nanomaterials like graphene have the potential to offer advanced tools for the early diagnosis, progression and treatment of cancer. Kostas Kostarelos, Professor of Nanomedicine, tells us about his work in this area.

    Read more

  • Professor Rob Bristow

    A multidisciplinary approach to cancer research in Manchester

    Team science, which sees experts in different fields work together on a single research question, is yielding exciting results. Professor Rob Bristow explains why he sees this approach as transformative to the cancer research environment.

    Read more

  • Professor Emma Crosbie

    Driving changes in cervical screening

    Ground-breaking research in cervical screening by Professor Emma Crosbie outlines the case for a Prevention and Early Detection (PED) approach.

    Read more

  • Professor Kaye Williams.

    Using nanotechnology for targeted delivery

    Professor Kaye Williams' research involves exploiting nanotechnologies in different ways across her research programmes in the Division of Pharmacy and Optometry. Here, Kaye gives us an overview of how they are being used.

    Read more

  • Professor Sarah Cartmell

    A meeting of giants

    A collaboration involving cancer and advanced materials is taking shape to make huge advances in the earlier detection of cancer. Lead supervisor Professor Sarah Cartmell discusses the implications of the new programme.

    Read more

  • Professor Stephen Taylor

    Taking discovery research up a gear

    Professor Stephen Taylor, Head of the Division of Cancer Sciences, explains how a combination of high-quality basic research, translational science, drug discovery and the 'Manchester way' of doing things are yielding results.

    Read more

  • Professor Gareth Evans

    Reducing the risk

    Professor Gareth Evans' research is focussed on neurofibromatosis and breast cancer. His research has led him to conclude that risk stratification offers the best way of targeting prevention and early detection (PED) approaches.

    Read more

  • Dr Fiona Thistlethwaite

    Bringing tomorrow’s medicines to patients today

    Working together to scale up cancer research activity and develop best practice is what Dr Fiona Thistlethwaite considers is the answer to increasing Manchester’s ability to deliver cell therapy clinical trials.

    Read more

  • Dr Santiago Zelenay

    An immunology revolution

    Dr Santiago Zelenay is using his background in fundamental immunology to understand how the immune system can be used to design better therapies for cancer patients.

    Read more

  • Professor Tracy Hussell in the lab.

    Bringing oncology and immunology together

    Professor Tracy Hussell discusses the important link between immunology and cancer, and why Manchester is the perfect place to lead on research that could lead to better patient outcomes.

    Read more

  • Professor Gordon Jayson.

    From bedside to bench and back again

    Focusing on ovarian cancer and drug development, Professor Gordon Jayson tells us why Manchester’s ability to run multiple novel clinical trials is the key to us becoming recognised as international cancer research leaders.

    Read more

  • Professor Karen Kirby

    Manchester’s place in tomorrow’s world

    Professor Karen Kirkby, Director of the UK’s first proton beam and research centre, outlines how Manchester is pioneering ground-breaking research into the next generation of cancer challenges.

    Read more

  • Dr Philip Crosbie

    Influencing NHS policy

    A change to lung cancer screening policy has been announced following the results of an unusual scheme pioneered in Manchester. Dr Philip Crosbie outlines why Manchester was the perfect place to trial the study.

    Read more

  • Professor Andrew Renehan

    Tackling reduction at home

    Professor Andrew Renehan talks about his home-focused cancer research programme, which is resulting in global benefits.

    Read more

  • Professor Vaskar Saha in the Tata Medical Centre (TMC) in Kolkata.

    Taking on the challenge

    When Professor Vaskar Saha saw the impact of childhood leukaemia in India, he asked: who can take on this challenge? Having already helped families across Europe to beat the disease, he knew that this was his calling.

    Read more

  • Professor Vaskar Saha

    Making a difference: Changing lives and meeting need

    Professor Vaskar Saha’s research is helping to significantly reduce mortality rates in children being treated for cancer in India. Here he talks about his mission to transfer global standards of care to a low resource country.

    Read more

  • Professor Caroline Dive

    Developing pioneering treatments

    Professor Caroline Dive CBE and her team are working with The Christie, developing ‘liquid biopsies’ to hunt cancer cells that have broken free from tumours and are circulating in the bloodstream. Here she tells us why her three year stay in Manchester has turned into 19 and counting!

    Read more

  • Professor Catharine West

    Personalisation: Genetic signatures for radiotherapy

    Professor Catharine West tells us how her decision to come to Manchester enabled her to pioneer developments in personalised radiotherapy.

    Read more

  • Professor Ananya Choudhury

    Pioneering treatment

    Clinical oncologist Professor Ananya Choudhury is leading one of the world’s most innovative radiotherapy treatment machines here in Manchester, one of the first seven of its kind globally. Here she tells us how the MR-linac will transform patient outcomes.

    Read more

  • Catharine West, Professor of Radiation Biology.

    Paving the way for better prostate cancer treatment

    Countries, including the UK, have been raising awareness about men’s health and diseases such as prostate and testicular cancer as part of the Movember campaign. Professor Catharine West tells us about the discovery of a new targeted and improved form of prostate cancer treatment.

    Read more

  • Professor Andy Brass.

    Thinking differently

    Andy Brass, Professor of Bioinformatics outlines the diversity of the data and expertise that is now needed in cancer research, from computer science through to medicine and genomics.

    Read more

  • Professor Rob Bristow

    Aligning research to improve prostate cancer patient outcomes

    A Canadian native and long-time supporter of the Movember Foundation, Professor Rob Bristow tells us about his ambitions around prostate cancer research.

    Read more

  • A researcher studying brain scans.

    Better together

    Professor Tim Illidge believes that it is the combination of clinical and scientific research teams, and their multidisciplinary working, which is driving innovations in personalised cancer medicine.

    Read more

More about cancer research in Manchester

Go beyond the stories and find out more about Manchester’s cancer research.

Conquering cancer

Cancer research in Manchester takes place within a unique landscape where three world-leading organisations work hand in hand.

The potent expertise of Cancer Research UK, The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, and The University of Manchester comes together within the Manchester Cancer Research Centre (MCRC).

Explore MCRC

A researcher studies a biopsy under the microscope.

More to explore

Discover more about cancer research at Manchester:

  • Cancer beacon
  • Division of Cancer Sciences
A mammographer studies tissue of a woman undergoing a mammogram.

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