Topic description and stories

We are are helping to end death and disease caused by cancer, saving more lives by detecting early and personalising treatments. The experiences of patients and their families shape every stage of research and of plans for the Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital, as we work together to change the story of cancer.

Professor Jean Abraham speaking to a patient

Cambridge is changing the story of cancer

15 July 2024

Find out about groundbreaking cancer research at Cambridge, including our planned new hospital, how we're studying the earliest stages of cancer, how AI is helping fight the disease, and the patients playing a key role in our work.

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Cytosponge

Artificial intelligence could be used to triage patients suspected at risk of early-stage oesophageal cancer

15 Apr 2021

Artificial intelligence ‘deep learning’ techniques can be used to triage suspected cases of Barrett oesophagus, a precursor to oesophageal cancer...

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Mammogram image

Changes can be detected in BRCA1 breast cells before they turn cancerous

09 Mar 2021

Researchers may have found the earliest changes that occur in seemingly healthy breast tissue long before any tumours appear, according to a new...

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Image showing individual and combined scans

‘Virtual biopsies’ could replace tissue biopsies in future thanks to technique developed by Cambridge scientists

06 Jan 2021

A new advanced computing technique using routine medical scans to enable doctors to take fewer, more accurate tumour biopsies, has been developed by...

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Dr Raj Jena and Yvonne Rimmer look at scans

AI could help cut waiting times for cancer by automating mark-up of patient scans prior to radiotherapy

16 Dec 2020

Doctors at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge aim to drastically cut cancer waiting times by using artificial intelligence (AI) to automate lengthy...

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Tiny golden bullets could help tackle asbestos-related cancers

27 Oct 2020

Gold nanotubes – tiny hollow cylinders one thousandth the width of a human hair – could be used to treat mesothelioma, a type of cancer caused by...

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Husband supporting a sick wife

Imaging technique could replace tissue biopsies in assessing drug resistance in breast cancer patients

06 Oct 2020

Imaging techniques could replace the need for invasive tissue biopsies in helping rapidly determine whether cancer treatments are working effectively...

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DNA representation

New model predicts oesophageal cancer eight years early for half of all patients

07 Sep 2020

DNA from tissue biopsies taken from patients with Barrett’s oesophagus – a risk factor for oesophageal cancer – could show which patients are most...

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G-quadruplex

Four-stranded DNA structures found to play role in breast cancer

03 Aug 2020

Four-stranded DNA structures – known as G-quadruplexes – have been shown to play a role in certain types of breast cancer for the first time...

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Globe

Genetic tool can identify Asian women at higher risk of breast cancer

31 Jul 2020

A genetic study in Asian women, led by Malaysian scientists in collaboration with Singapore and the University of Cambridge, has revealed that a...

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Cytosponge

‘Pill on a string’ test to transform oesophageal cancer diagnosis

30 Jul 2020

A ‘pill on a string’ test can identify ten times more people with Barrett’s oesophagus than the usual GP route, after results from a 3-year trial...

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Unexpected experiences: Richard Gilbertson discusses how lockdown has enabled him to kick-start a new initiative

21 Jul 2020

Faced with closed laboratories and cancelled conferences, paediatric oncologist Richard Gilbertson kick-started a “21st-century method” for meeting...

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Naked mole rat

Secrets of naked mole-rat cancer resistance unearthed

01 Jul 2020

Naked mole-rats can live for an incredibly long time and have an exceptional resistance to cancer thanks to unique conditions in their bodies that...

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