Our research in Belfast
Belfast is the home of one of our new Cancer Research UK Centres, which will help set the pace for national and international progress in research into bowel, oesophageal and breast cancers. It will also concentrate on pioneering the latest techniques in radiotherapy, improving cancer diagnosis and developing new, more effective drugs.
Cancer Research UK supports the work of a number of research groups within the Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology. The Centre is directed by Professor Dennis McCance. The centre is located next to the Northern Ireland Clinical Cancer Centre at Belfast City Hospital, so that local scientists and clinicians can work together to improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer.
Cancer Research UK also funds the clinical trials work of the Children’s Cancer and Leukaemia Group (CCLG) at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Belfast. The group co-ordinates the care of virtually all the UK’s children with cancer, ensuring they receive the most up-to-date treatments.
Watch a short film about the Belfast Cancer Research UK Centre:
Below are some of the highlights of our research in Belfast.
Click on the names below to find out more about each scientist
These pages contain highlights of the research we fund in this city - we'll be updating and expanding them regularly. Please visit our Grants & Research website for detailed scientific information about our research.
All cancer types
Prof David Hirst
Experimental Therapeutics, School of Pharmacy
Queen's University, Belfast
Improving treatment for cancer
Professor David Hirst and his team at Queen's University Belfast are investigating ways to improve the effectiveness of cancer treatment. Their work into the use of nanoparticles to improve radiotherapy is at the cutting edge of research.
Prof Kevin Prise
Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology
Queen's University, Belfast
Understanding the effects of radiation and improving radiotherapy
At Queen's University Belfast, Professor Kevin Prise is working to improve the effectiveness of radiotherapy - around 40 per cent of patients whose cancer is cured receive this treatment. He is a world-leading expert in this area of research.
Breast cancer
Prof Paul Harkin
Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology
Queen's University, Belfast
Understanding more about the BRCA1 gene
Professor Paul Harkin is Professor of Molecular Oncology at Queen's University Belfast. He is investigating the function of an important gene called BRCA1. Faults in this gene cause some inherited breast cancers. The gene is also often found to be damaged in breast cancers that occur by chance. Understanding more about how BRCA1 works may help scientists to design better cancer treatments.
Lung cancer
Dr Dean Fennell
Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology
The Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast
Overcoming drug resistance in lung cancer treatment
Dr Dean Fennell is a leading lung cancer specialist. He works in the Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology at the Queen's University of Belfast and holds a Cancer Research UK Clinician Scientist Fellowship. As well as working as a consultant he also co-ordinates laboratory studies into non small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Dr Fennell uses the discoveries he makes in the lab to improve treatment for people with this disease.
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