Screening research
Cancer Research UK funding has been instrumental in the development and evaluation of the current national screening programmes for breast and cervical cancers. And we're currently funding the evaluation of the new bowel screening programme.
We are also continuing to support UK researchers in their efforts to improve screening methods, and to develop new ones.
Our Screening Matters campaign to get more people into cancer screening was developed with the help of many of our cancer screening researchers.
Below are some of the highlights of our screening research portfolio.
| Click on the names below to find out more about each scientist |
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Prof Wendy Atkin
Cancer Research UK Colorectal Cancer UnitSt Mark's Hospital, HarrowDetecting and preventing bowel cancer
Professor Wendy Atkin, based at St Mark's Hospital in London, is a prominent bowel cancer researcher. Her research focuses on preventing the disease and detecting it early.
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Dr Joan Austoker
Cancer Research UK Primary Care Education Research GroupInstitute of Health Sciences, University of Oxford, OxfordEducation, informed choice and patient experience in cancer screening and early diagnosis
Dr Joan Austoker directs the Cancer Research UK Primary Care Education Research Group at the University of Oxford. Her team's research is aimed at providing people with evidence-based information to understand more about cancer screening and early diagnosis, so that they can make informed choices.
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Prof Jack Cuzick
Cancer Research UK Centre for Epidemiology, Mathematics and StatisticsWolfson Institute, Barts and The London, Queen Mary¿s School of Medicine and Dentistry, LondonCancer prevention and screening
Professor Jack Cuzick runs the internationally renowned Centre for Epidemiology, Mathematics and Statistics at the Wolfson Institute in London.
The department carries out a huge range of research on many different cancer types, and is concerned with cancer prevention and screening, especially for breast, cervical and bowel cancers.
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Prof Stephen Duffy
Cancer Research UK Centre for Epidemiology, Mathematics and StatisticsWolfson Institute, Barts and The London, Queen Mary¿s School of Medicine & Dentistry, LondonEvaluating screening and uncovering risk factors
Professor Stephen Duffy is a renowned expert on cancer screening and epidemiology (the study of disease in large populations).
He and his team evaluatecancer screening programmes to see how effective they are. They are also investigating the causes and risk factors for different types of cancer.
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Dr Ros Eeles
Section of Cancer GeneticsThe Institute of Cancer Research, Sutton, SurreyStudying prostate and breast cancer genes
Dr Ros Eeles at the Institute of Cancer Research in Sutton is studying prostate and breast cancer genetics.
She is also involved in helping to evaluate the NHS breast screening programme, ensuring that the service continues to improve. To this end, she is investigating alternatives to mammography for women at greater risk of the disease.
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Prof Ian Jacobs
Department of Gynaecological OncologyUniversity College London, LondonScreening for ovarian cancer
Professor Ian Jacobs and his team are testing ovarian cancer screening techniques to see which are most effective.
Ovarian cancer has a poor survival rate because it is often diagnosed at an advanced stage. Screening has the potential to pick up the disease at a much earlier stage, and could save thousands of lives.
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Miss Valerie McCormack
Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology UnitLondon School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, LondonBreast cancer risk in different ethnic groups
Valerie McCormack works at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, investigating how lifestyle choices affect breast density in women from different ethnic groups.
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Prof David Neal
Oncology Department, Addenbrooke's HospitalUniversity of Cambridge, CambridgeBetter screening and treatment for prostate cancer
Professor David Neal and his colleagues in Cambridge are taking a number of different approaches in their work on prostate cancer. A particular focus for the team is to identify better ways of distinguishing aggressive cancers from "non¿aggressive" cancers in order to target surgery to the right group of men.
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Prof Julian Peto
Non-communicable Disease Epidemiology UnitLondon School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, LondonEpidemiology, genes and cancer
Professor Julian Peto is the Chair of Epidemiology at The Institute of Cancer Research in Sutton, Surrey.
His group conducts large population-based studies and genetic research into several cancers, including breast cancer, cervical cancer and mesothelioma.
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Prof Peter Sasieni
Biostatistics and Cancer Epidemiology GroupWolfson Institute, Barts and The London, Queen Mary¿s School of Medicine and Dentistry, LondonImproving cancer screening
Professor Peter Sasieni is a respected researcher in the field of cancer screening. Based at the Wolfson Institute in London, he is helping to ensure that existing NHS cervical screening programme runs as efficiently as possible. He is also director of a new clinical trials unit specialising in cancer screening and prevention.
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Prof Gareth Williams
Cancer Research UK Chromosomal Replication Research GroupWolfson Institute for Biomedical Research, University College London, LondonUnderstanding how cells divide, and improving cancer treatment and detection
Based at the Wolfson Institute for Biomedical Research in London, Professor Gareth Williams¿ team is investigating how a group of proteins work together to allow DNA to be copied, a process called DNA replication.
Faults in these proteins are known to contribute to the development of cancer, and detecting them in urine and other samples might be a useful way to detect certain cancers.
