FUTURE OF OPERATING THEATRES
A Fighting cancer - the cutting edge
in a unique chain of centres being launched around the country. Cancer Research UK already supports research at Imperial but is set to increase its contribution to £8 million a year to help develop the Centre.
Charles Coombes
new cutting edge cancer centre
dedicated to robotic surgery, cancer
imaging and drug discovery was launched in June, putting London at the forefront of cancer research.
The Imperial Cancer Research UK Centre will see more than 200 clinicians and scientists from Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Imperial College London working together to develop breakthrough treatments for the disease.
The Centre is the latest link Jul/Aug 10 nhe 27
Scientists at the Centre will build on the trust and college’s internationally renowned clinical and research strengths. They will develop robotic technology to bring the latest surgical techniques to cancer patients in London. They will also carry out research using the latest imaging techniques to watch cancer drugs at work inside the patient’s body, identifying which treatments work best at an earlier stage.
The Centre forms part of the Academic Health Science Centre, a unique partnership formed in October 2007 between the college and the trust, whose vision is to improve the quality of life for its patients and populations by taking new discoveries and translating
them into new therapies and treatments quicker than ever before.
Professor Charles Coombes, head of the division of cancer (surgery and cancer) and consultant oncologist at the trust, who will help lead the Centre said: “Imperial College is one of the main science universities in the UK and is amongst the top three or four in the world for biomedical science at the moment. Broadly what we are trying to do is to harness Imperial’s scientific ability to help people with cancer – up until now Imperial has concentrated its efforts around infection control and cardiac.
“We have ambitious plans to develop new cancer therapies and interventions which will save lives and improve the quality of care not just in our hospitals but for cancer patients everywhere. We aim to improve all aspects of cancer care from prevention, detection and early diagnosis, to treatment and
palliative care.
“Over the last few years, I and a group of others have been surveying the potential applications for cancer treatment, from what has been going on in the science department. From these investigations it appears that there are three to four areas of work which we could look to fairly rapidly capitalize on.
“The first is in bio-engineering, where experts in robotics, micro- sensors and cancer detection mechanisms. The second is around imaging and the third is around chemistry, where we are now engaging in a cancer drug discovery programme.
“The final area which we are focusing on is more around predisposition to cancer and we are now in the process of developing a large department whose main remit is to look at the causes of common cancers in our society and then conduct prevention studies.”
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