Published on 21 July 2023
Liverpool cancer researchers have been given £260,000 in charity funding to pursue new cutting-edge studies.
The new research projects, designed to further our knowledge of cancer or improve treatment and care, were successful in the annual Clatterbridge Research Funding Scheme.
In all, 18 separate projects – split into large, medium and small schemes – were considered by a judging panel before the final seven were chosen to be awarded funds.
One of the large studies which won £50,000 in funding is being led by Dr Ainhoa Mielgo, a reader in the Department of Molecular and Clinical Cancer Medicine of the University of Liverpool, with Clatterbridge medical oncologist Prof Dan Palmer as clinical lead. The research aims to reduce the spread of pancreatic cancer in patients who have chemotherapy.
Another large study which has received £50,000 is being undertaken by Prof Christian Ottensmeier, Clatterbridge consultant in medical oncology, who is leading research into which types of immunotherapy work best – and in which combination – for different patients with head and neck cancer.
A further award of £50,000 was secured by specialist registrar in haematology Dr Yeong Jer (Troy) Lim to study the cells of people with blood cancer. His team will try to discover which immune cells lead to which certain outcomes for patients with different types of blood cancer, using samples taken from Merseyside patients.
Dr Seamus Coyle, consultant in palliative care at Clatterbridge, was also awarded £50,000 to undertake more studies into his pioneering work to understand the dying process in cancer patients. Dr Coyle has developed a test to accurately predict a patient’s risk of death within the last four weeks of life and this award will allow research to be carried out on blood plasma from Clatterbridge patients with solid tumour cancers to test his prediction tool.
Dr Umair Khan, a haematology specialist registrar, is researching blood cancer treatments and was also funded with £20,000 and two other projects also received the same award.
Katrina Bury, head of the Clatterbridge Cancer Charity, said: “We are delighted to be able to fund this ground-breaking research, which is driving forward new knowledge in cancer treatments. The primary aim of the Charity is to help improve outcomes for Clatterbridge patients and this life-saving research is helping to do just that.”