| Dear Voornaam, Welcome to your November newsletter. I hope you and your family are well. The uncertain and unpredictable year continues but I’d like to say a huge thank you from Cancer Research UK (CRUK) for all the efforts to get cancer research up and running despite the ongoing lockdown – it means so much to us and our supporters. In August, we announced our collaboration with the National Cancer Institute to define a new era in cancer research and discovery, and launched Cancer Grand Challenges. Last month, we revealed the nine new challenges, along with a new brand identity and website. Explore the challenges and submit your expression of interest by 22 April 2021.
In line with our commitment to create a more inclusive research environment, we co-hosted a panel in September with The Francis Crick’s Race Equity network, PRISM, to listen and learn from four Black cancer researchers. Thank you to Dr Furaha Asani, Dr Lynn Asante-Asare, Prof Dean Fennell and Dr Faith Uwadiae who openly shared their experience in academia and summarised priority actions funders should take to tackle racial bias in cancer research. Their recommendations will feed into a refreshed action plan we’ll publish later this year.
Lastly, this year’s Nobel Prize winners were announced in October. Warm congratulations to Harvey Alter, Michael Houghton and Charles Rice for winning the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their work in discovering the Hepatitis C virus. And warm congratulations to Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A. Doudna on their historic Nobel Prize in Chemistry win recognising their work in CRISPR/Cas9.
Kind regards, Iain Foulkes Executive Director, Research & Innovation Cancer Research UK |
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| | | Applications accepted all-year round |
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| | NEW GUIDANCE FOR RESEARCHERS RELATING TO THE SECOND WAVE If you’re a researcher funded by CRUK, we know this continues to be a tough time for you and your teams. We’ve updated our information for all grant holders and applicants, which outlines our support and how we can be flexible to help minimise the impact of the pandemic on your research activities. Clinical trials are an essential part of cancer research and care, and for clinical academics, Clinical Research Training Fellows and Research Nurses, we’ve revised our policy on redeploying CRUK-funded researchers, which now says: - There should be no national pause on recruitment to clinical trials during future waves of COVID-19. Trials should be paused locally in response to exceptional strain on hospitals.
- All CRUK-funded staff and facilities redeployed during the first wave should be restored to cancer research.
- Redeployment of CRUK-funded staff should only be considered in exceptional circumstances, and only to support frontline cancer services.
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| | EARLY DETECTION & DIAGNOSIS: A ROADMAP TO THE FUTURE In October 2020, we launched our landmark Early Detection and Diagnosis of Cancer Roadmap. Following consultation with over 100 experts, we’re calling on everyone – from researchers and industry, to regulators, the NHS and the public – to integrate fragmented efforts to realise a future where early detection and diagnosis is a routine reality in the UK.
Join us in December for a webinar where we'll be discussing the reports’ recommendations and opportunities for collaborative, cross-sector research to accelerate progress in early detection and diagnosis. We’ll be joined by key leaders from across the worlds of research, industry, government and healthcare for a live Q&A session and panel discussion on the future of early detection. |
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 DARE TO TAKE ON ONE OF THE MOST COMPLEX CHALLENGES Cancer Grand Challenges is giving international teams of researchers the freedom to think differently, act creatively and explore truly innovative science by taking on complex challenges in cancer research. A series of £20m ($25m) awards are available for multidisciplinary teams who take on one of the nine new challenges, which are now open for applications. These challenges have been selected by funding partners, CRUK and NCI, for their potential to make radical progress against cancer. Do you have what it takes to tackle one of the toughest challenges in cancer? Select a challenge, start building your team and get ready to submit your expression of interest by 22 April 2021. |
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|  HOW FUNDERS CAN TACKLE RACIAL BIAS IN CANCER RESEARCH As part of our commitment to help create a more inclusive research environment, we co-hosted a virtual discussion with The Francis Crick Institute’s PRISM Race Equity Network to hear from four Black cancer researchers. Dr Furaha Asani, Dr Lynn Asante-Asare, Prof Dean Fennell and Dr Faith Uwadiae shared their experience in academia and summarised priority actions funders should take to tackle bias in cancer research. These actions include highlighting the value of data to understand and break down systemic racism, creating a culture of accountability, and building support networks and safe spaces for Black and ethnic minority researchers.
As we implement initiatives to bring about positive change and a more inclusive culture, we’ll continue to engage with our Black and other ethnic minority researchers in ways that recognise the identities and perspectives of different ethnic groups as distinct. |
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| | CRUK-NC3Rs AWARDS: SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER SCHEME CRUK-funded researchers are eligible to apply for the 2020/21 CRUK-NC3Rs Skills & Knowledge Transfer scheme. These awards offer grants of up to £75,000 to support the wider adoption and transfer of 3Rs approaches including skills, knowledge and tools, between different laboratories and institutions working in cancer research. Review successful projects from the previous round as inspiration for your submission.
Don’t miss the opportunity and submit your outline application by 27 November 2020. |
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 GIVE YOUR BUSINESS IDEA THE BEST CHANCE OF SUCCESS Cancer researchers from across the UK are invited to join the Alderley Park Oncology Development Programme to develop start-up projects that improve the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. We’ve co-funded this scheme with Innovate UK and the support of four pharmaceutical companies, as part of our Entrepreneurial Programmes Initiative. You’ll take part in a three-day pre-accelerator bootcamp covering the foundations of setting up a business, before going through a selection process to progress to the six-month intensive accelerator stage. At this stage, you will be joined by advisors from AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, GlaxoSmithKline, and Roche, and get the opportunity to receive investment and work office space at Alderley Park. |
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|  THE THRILLS AND SKILLS OF BECOMING AN ENTREPRENEUR Five scientists talk frankly about their experiences of entrepreneurship in a recent researcher voices article. Debora Lucarelli, Monika Gullerova, Jason Mellad, Myriam Ouberai and Anna Perdrix Rosell share how they started and what qualities they think are most important to be an entrepreneur. Sharing advice to researchers considering entrepreneurship, Myriam said: “It’s easy to overthink and doubt yourself but if you have a good idea that you believe will have an impact, then you should go for it. I recommend reaching out to as many people as you can and to seek advice from people who have done it before. It’s what I did, and it worked." |
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| | CRUK SENIOR NURSE WINS PRESTIGIOUS RESEARCH AWARD Congratulations to Ben Hood, CRUK Senior Nurse based at the Sir Bobby Robson Cancer Trials Research Centre in Newcastle, who has won this year’s Excellence in Cancer Research Nursing RCNi Nurse Award for his work to demystify and highlight the important role of clinical research nurses.
Ben piloted an educational project to tackle low awareness of cancer research nursing and the effect of this on clinical trial delivery and patient outcomes. He reached over 2,000 student nurses and NIHR is now developing the project into an e-learning resource. This award is just one way we support and champion all research nurses working to deliver vital cancer research across the UK. |
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 CHILDREN'S CANCER GETS A BOOST WITH THE SU2C–CRUK AWARDS We've announced three new research grants of $1 million to give research into children’s cancer a boost. The Paediatric Cancer New Discoveries Challenge awards is a joint initiative between CRUK and Stand Up to Cancer and will support new research collaborations between UK and US labs. The awards aim to spark fresh ideas that could increase survival for children and young people with cancer and reduce the long-term side effects that can occur following treatment.
The awarded teams will investigate: - The regions of children’s brains that are most sensitive to radiotherapy damage
- The immune system of patients with neuroblastoma and medulloblastoma
- The mechanisms of accumulation of the DNA-RNA hybrids known as R-loops in Ewing sarcoma
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|  NEW DRUG FOR HIGH-RISK CHILDREN'S CANCER IS TRIAL READY A new drug that has passed safety tests in adults is likely to be effective against the aggressive childhood cancer, neuroblastoma. CRUK-funded researchers found that fadraciclib can target N-Myc, publishing their results in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Amplification of N-Myc is strongly associated with more severe forms of neuroblastoma but the “undruggable” nature of its protein structure means targeting oncogenic Myc is a challenge. Lab results show fadraciclib can stop N-Myc production and slow tumour growth.
As children with high-risk neuroblastoma currently receive very intense treatment, fadriaciclib could be an alternative option and expand the use of precision medicines in children’s cancers. Clinical trials will open by the end of the year and will be carried out as part of the international E-SMART clinical trial. |
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 NEW APPROACH TAMES CELL CYCLE WITH CANCER DRUGS A new approach that can synchronise the cell division cycle of human cells in culture, without causing DNA damage, has been developed by Iain Hagan and Wendy Trotter at the CRUK Manchester Institute. Described as a ‘game changer’ and published in Open Biology, their technique exploits the ability of CDK4/6 inhibitor drugs to arrest the cell cycle progression at a natural pause point of the cycle.
In a viewpoint article, Iain recounts how he came up with the idea and gives an insight into the journey and resilience it took to develop it and get the work published. The approach is currently being used in many labs with some publishing research that cites use of the technique. |
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|  UK HEALTH INEQUALITIES: SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEPRIVATION Our recent health inequalities report reveals that there are around 20,000 extra cancer cases each year in more deprived areas in the UK. With differences seen across prevention, diagnosis, care and treatment, the sobering reality is that people in more deprived areas have worse cancer survival. While the report focuses on socio-economic factors, it has become clear that tackling health inequalities must be a priority in the Government’s upcoming spending review if we are to improve cancer survival in every part of the country. |
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| | | Should diverse representation in UK clinical trials be mandatory? 10 November 2020 |
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