Manchester cancer scientists given multi-million pound research boost

Manchester scientists have been awarded a multi-million pound cash boost from Cancer Research UK in the charity’s largest ever investment into radiotherapy research.

Experts from the Cancer Research UK Manchester Centre are set to receive £16.5 million over the next five years to pioneer new radiotherapy technologies and techniques that could help more people survive cancer in the future.

The Manchester centre has been awarded the largest amount of a £56m funding pot, and has been chosen to be one of just three locations awarded Radiation Research Unit status, with funding for both research and infrastructure.

In Manchester, the funding will support researchers to use advanced radiotherapy technologies such as proton beam therapy.

Scientists and doctors will also work to personalise radiotherapy in combination with new treatments.

'You don’t expect to be told your child has cancer'

Michael and Ruth Brierley, from Blackpool, Lancashire, know all too well why radiotherapy research is so important.

Their daughter, Skye, was diagnosed with a rare and inoperable brain tumour at the age of 4 – and treated with pioneering proton beam therapy.

In December 2017, the couple booked a doctor’s appointment after noticing their daughter’s left eye turn completely inward. Just days later, the now six-year-old was diagnosed with an inoperable, fist-sized tumour behind her nose and eye.

Because doctors couldn’t perform surgery on the rare cancer, called rhabdomyosarcoma, Skye was sent to Florida for proton beam therapy – an advanced form of radiotherapy that targets certain tumours more precisely than previous treatments, increasing success rates and reducing side-effects. It allows high-energy protons to be targeted directly at a tumour, reducing the dose to surrounding tissues and organs.

The family spent nine weeks in the U.S. and Skye had 31 rounds of treatment. Each treatment required her to wear a mask to direct the proton beams as accurately as possible to her tumour.

At the time, proton beam therapy was not available in the UK.

Two years on and thanks to treatment, Skye’s cancer is now stable. She has returned to school and is enjoying life with siblings Kira, 15 and Damien,11. She has regular check-ups in Manchester to monitor her health.

The Brierley family are delighted that such significant funding is being awarded by Cancer Research UK into the development of advanced radiotherapy techniques, which helped to save their daughter’s life.

Dad Michael said: “Skye is living proof of how effective proton therapy treatment can be. You don’t expect to be told your child has cancer – it was devastating for all the family. Thanks to pioneering treatment and advances in science, Skye is now doing really well. But without the scientific research that developed proton beam therapy, things could have turned out very differently.”

He added: “We are very pleased that funding is going into radiotherapy research just down the road in Manchester. We are extremely grateful to scientists here in the North West, who are developing cutting-edge treatments that will go on to save the lives of more people like Skye.”

'A cornerstone of cancer medicine'

Professor Rob Bristow, Director of the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, is lead researcher for the Manchester centre which could help to save the lives of more people with cancer in the city – and across the UK – in the future.

He said: “We are very proud that Manchester has been awarded this grant to bring the next generation of radiotherapy treatments to patients sooner. The funding will support us to develop new radiotherapy technologies to help more people beat cancer, with fewer side effects for a better quality of life after treatment.

“In Manchester, many of our patients have pre-existing medical conditions and our unique programme of research will help us to decide on the most suitable treatment for them."

Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said: “Radiotherapy is a cornerstone of cancer medicine, with around 3 in 10 patients receiving it as part of their treatment. The launch of our network marks a new era of radiotherapy research in the UK. Scientists will combine advances in our understanding of cancer biology with cutting-edge technology to make this treatment more precise and effective than ever before”.