Professor John Griffiths

Molecular Imaging Laboratory
Cambridge Research Institute
Cambridge

Spying on cancer

Professor John Griffiths is an international expert in cancer imaging, using the latest technology to see tumours growing and spreading within the body. His research is enabling doctors to measure the effectiveness of new cancer drugs, and paving the way for earlier diagnosis of the disease.

Seeing inside the body

Imaging is increasingly important in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Professor Griffiths and his team are using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) to visualise cancer cells within the body, and to understand what is happening inside them.

Professor Griffiths is leading the way in this research, studying how tumours develop and predicting how they will respond to treatment. Working with doctors in Cambridge, he is using these techniques to improve cancer diagnosis and study the effects of drugs and other treatments. He is also working to improve the sensitivity and power of various imaging methods.

This research provides cancer doctors with much more than “X-ray vision” – it enables them to monitor a patient’s cancer and discover whether a treatment is working, faster than ever before. Better imaging techniques are also the key to earlier, more accurate diagnosis of cancer – at a stage where treatment is more likely to be successful.

In 2010, Professor Griffiths received the European Magnetic Resonance award, and in 2011 he received the Gold Medal of the International Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. Both were in recognition of his pioneering work in cancer spectroscopy imaging.