Scottish cancer medicine hubs secure £4m
The development of new cancer treatments in Scotland is to receive major funding, providing future hope for people diagnosed with the disease.
Glasgow's Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre (ECMC) and Paediatric ECMC has been awarded £2.3m and Edinburgh ECMC will receive £1.8m over five years to advance its pioneering research into new cancer treatments.
Investment is provided by Cancer Research UK and the Scottish Government with contribution from the Little Princes Trust, to help doctors and nurses find cancer treatments of tomorrow for both children and adults.
Glasgow and Edinburgh ECMCs are part of a network of 17 UK centres, externally funded by Cancer Research UK, which delivers clinical trials of new treatments. Since the network was established in 2007 about 30,000 patients have taken part in 2,100 clinical trials.
This funding will allow new, experimental treatments – including immunotherapies, cell-based therapies and personalised radiotherapy – to be developed for a wide variety of cancers as well as improving existing treatments.
ECMCs work in conjunction with local NHS facilities to provide access to cutting-edge cancer treatments. Testing these treatments helps to establish new ways of detecting and monitoring the disease and to evaluate how it responds to the treatment.
Executive Director of Research and Innovation at Cancer Research UK, Dr Iain Foulkes, said:
“We are proud to be supporting our successful ECMC network, bringing together vast medical and scientific expertise to translate the latest scientific discoveries from the lab into the clinic.The ECMC network is delivering the cancer treatments of the future, bringing new hope to people affected by cancer. The trials taking place today will give the next generation the best possible chance of beating cancer. The adult and paediatric ECMC networks will offer clinical trials for many different types of cancer. Researchers will be working to find new treatments and tackle the unique challenges presented by cancers in children and young people. Working with our partners, this new funding will bring hope for more effective, personalised therapies for everyone affected by cancer.”
Chief Executive of the Little Princess Trust, Phil Brace, said:
“Cancer remains the leading cause of death amongst children and young people, and we must change that. Since 2016, The Little Princess Trust has been funding research with the aim to offer more targeted and less toxic treatments for children and young people with cancer. We’ve made some good progress, but we want to do so much more. We will achieve so much more for children and young people by working together.”
Scotland’s Chief Scientist for Health, Professor Dame Anna Dominiczak, said:
“Early phase clinical trials are an essential component in the drive to develop innovative and effective new approaches to the treatment of cancer. The Scottish Government Chief Scientist Office is delighted to partner with Cancer Research UK and the Little Princess Trust in funding the adult and paediatric ECMC’s here in Scotland.”