17m invested in Leicester to turn lab discoveries into new cancer drugs

Cancer Research UK has awarded the University £1.7 million through a new Centres Network Accelerator Award for research to crack the structure of molecules involved in cancer and to develop new drugs.

The Centres Network Accelerator Award is a new initiative by Cancer Research UK and provides additional infrastructure to research centres in order to unite scientists, boost collaborative research and inspire ‘bench to bedside’ science.

The award will be given over five years and aims to create high-quality data in structural biology – the 3D information about molecules involved in cancer - and increase collaboration between scientists to generate new ideas and make the most of shared resources. The award will focus on research that brings the understanding of structural biology to drugs that could treat patients.

Professor Catrin Pritchard (pictured), science director at the Cancer Research UK Leicester Centre, said: “Personalised medicine is the future of cancer treatment, and by collaborating with centres across the UK, we look forward to accelerating research underpinning drug development. Making the most of our resources in structural biology across the network is crucial to making sure science in the laboratory turns into treatments for patients.”