On World Cancer Day 2016 (Thursday, 4th February), Yorkshire Cancer Research has announced a £2.8m investment in six new projects aimed at improving the treatment and experience of cancer patients in Yorkshire.
 
The charity recently announced an ambitious new strategy to save 2,000 lives in Yorkshire every year by investing £100m over the next 10 years to tackle cancer inequalities in the region.
 
The new funding will support research into priority areas such as lung cancer, early detection and clinical trials, and will involve thousands of people throughout the region.
 

• Yorkshire Cancer Research will invest £634,000 in the first clinical trial of a ‘smart-bomb’ drug discovered with funding from the charity at the University of Bradford’s Institute of Cancer Therapeutics in 2011. The drug is being progressed into trials by the University’s spin-out company, Incanthera Limited.
  The treatment is derived from colchicine, a natural compound occurring in the autumn crocus plant. It is designed to find and destroy solid tumours, sparing healthy tissue.
  Patients from across Yorkshire with advanced cancers, including lung, breast, colorectal and prostate cancer, will be recruited to take part in the trial, which will be led by Professor Chris Twelves at the University of Leeds. The trial will be carried out by clinicians at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
• Experts at the University of Leeds led by Professor Phil Quirke will aim to save the lives of up to 150 bowel cancer patients each year by significantly improving standards of treatment and care in Yorkshire.
  The £1.5m project will ensure the highest quality of treatment is available across the county including state of the art surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy as well as collecting information specific to each patient which will be used to guide treatment and monitor outcomes.
• Researchers at the University of Leeds, led by Professor Galina Velikova and supported by a £200,000 investment, will use an electronic patient reporting system to monitor the experience of lung cancer patients undergoing two different forms of treatment.
  The project will involve patients at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust treated with either keyhole surgery or an innovative new therapy called Stereotactic Ablative Body Radiotherapy (SABR).
  The results of the study will be used to help patients choose the right treatment for them and could have a positive impact on cancer waiting times.
• Researchers at the Hull York Medical School led by Professor Michael Lind will investigate whether a mutation found in some lung cancers could be detected using a blood test rather than a biopsy.
  Patients with the mutation respond better and experience fewer side-effects when treated with a targeted therapy rather than conventional chemotherapy. Patients currently undergo a biopsy to determine whether they have the mutation, but this invasive procedure can be dangerous, which means not all patients can have one.
  Supported by £92,000 from the charity, the team will trial a non-invasive test that can quickly and safely detect the mutation in blood samples. Patients from Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust will be recruited to take part in the trial, due to start later this year.
• Yorkshire Cancer Research will invest £106,314 in the development and testing of new tools aimed at encouraging more people to take part in the national screening programme for bowel cancer.
  All men and women aged 60-74 in England are invited to carry out an FOB (faecal occult blood) test at home. The FOB test checks for the presence of blood in stool samples, which could be an early sign of bowel cancer.
  Researchers at the University of Leeds, led by Professor Daryl O’Connor, will work with the North East Hub of the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme to introduce new leaflets designed to help people overcome the barriers that stop them from returning their test kit.
• Researchers at the Hull York Medical School, led by Professor Miriam Johnson, will test an enhanced GP system developed to improve access to palliative care for cancer patients in Yorkshire.
  Funded by a £300,000 investment, the new system, which will also help identify those who can be managed by their usual care team, or who also need support from specialist palliative care services, will be trialled in a number of GP practices and expert training in how to use it will be provided.
  There are many needs assessment tools available to assist clinicians in providing palliative care for people with cancer, however they tend to be too detailed and long for daily clinical use.

 
Charles Rowett, Chief Executive Officer at Yorkshire Cancer Research, said: “We are delighted to announce another significant investment in projects that will tackle some of the major issues we face in our county.
 
“Lung cancer is one of Yorkshire’s biggest killers and yet research into this disease is massively underfunded. We will continue to focus on this huge problem during 2016.
 
“We’re also very proud to reveal plans for the first clinical trial of a drug discovered in our region thanks to funding from our charity and other organisations. The trial will bring this innovative treatment one step closer to reaching cancer patients.”