Cambridge launches new Pancreatic Cancer Centre

Today marks the launch of the new Cambridge Pancreatic Cancer Centre, a multi-disciplinary centre of excellence which aims to bring cutting-edge pancreatic research from the bench to the bedside.

The Centre will focus on conducting world-class human clinical trials of therapies and diagnostics which have shown scientific potential.

“Our goal is to use laboratory discoveries to rapidly develop effective new treatments and monitoring methods for pancreatic cancer patients,” said Professor David Tuveson, Director of the new centre.

The Centre aims to:

• Provide treatment and diagnostic options to local and international pancreatic cancer patients seeking novel treatments
• Design and implement ways to increase patient participation in pancreatic cancer trials locally, nationally, and internationally
• Establish a multi-disciplinary research community within the University of Cambridge that coordinates and sponsors research projects to develop new diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for pancreatic cancer
• Contribute to publications in pancreatic cancer medicine for broad dissemination to government, academia, and industry
• Translate research findings in pancreatic cancer to clinics
• Pursue private and public sector funding to ensure success of objectives

Each year, pancreatic cancer strikes more than 7500 people in the United Kingdom and over 43,000 in the United States.  Because cancer of the pancreas is often not diagnosed until after it has spread, it has one of the lowest survival rates:  the one-year survival rate is approximately 20%, and the five-year survival rate is only 4%.

Professor Tuveson continued: “With the Centre, we hope to change the perception that there aren’t treatment options for people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.”

Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge, said: “This is a tremendously exciting initiative which will take advantage of Cambridge’s numerous strengths as a centre for cancer research to develop new, practical applications for the benefit of pancreatic cancer patients. Pancreatic cancer is a devastating disease that not only affects thousands of people in the United Kingdom every year but is also the sixth leading cause of cancer deaths in the European Union. This Centre will help progress the development of more effective treatments, which are badly needed.”

Harpal Kumar, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said: “This new Centre in Cambridge will give patients access to trials of exciting new treatments where they otherwise may not have many options. The involvement of Cancer Research UK’s leading scientists will ensure that discoveries made in the lab reach these patients as fast as possible. This Centre is focussing on a critically important field of research and we look forward to seeing the impact of its work in the future.”