Pioneer Award

Organisation: CRUK Beatson Institute

Discipline: Cancer cell biology

Expertise: Integrin cell biology, invasion, metastasis

Professor Jim Norman chairs the Pioneer Award Committee. Jim is deputy director and senior group leader of the Integrin Cell Biology team at the CRUK Beatson Institute. Jim’s research focuses on a group of adhesion receptors that control the growth, migration and development of cancer cells.  His understanding of basic cell biology provides crucial expertise to help the Committee judge applications which are grounded in solid biology. 

Title: Group leader of the Dynamical Cell Systems Team

Discipline: Cancer biology

Expertise: Cell systems, morphology, dynamic cell systems

Dr Chris Bakal is group leader of the Dynamical Cell Systems Team at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, which is funded by a CRUK Programme Foundation Award. His team carries out groundbreaking research into understanding the way cancer cells change shape and spread throughout the body. He has consolidated his extensive knowledge of basic cell biology and communication systems, integrating computational technologies to provide a holistic and system-level understanding of cancer. His approach reflects the sort of multidisciplinary activity that the Pioneer Award hopes to attract.

Organisation: National Physical Laboratory and Imperial College London

Discipline: Physics

Expertise: Mass spectrometry techniques, molecular profiling of biological samples.

Professor Josephine Bunch is a Principal Scientist at the National Physical Laboratory and Chair of Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry at Imperial College London. As well as leading research in mass spectrometry imaging techniques, Josephine is applying these techniques to generate novel, detailed molecular maps of breast, bowel and pancreatic tumours.

Josephine’s collaborative approach and exciting application of physical sciences to biological questions will be invaluable in the Committee’s search for revolutionary, inter-disciplinary ideas to further our understanding of cancer biology and develop novel solutions for patient impact.

Organisation: University College London (UCL) 

Discipline: Bioengineering

Expertise: 3D in vitro modelling, biomimetic tissues

Dr Umber Cheema is a senior lecturer in tissue engineering at the UCL Division of Surgery and Interventional Science. Umber brings an extensive understanding of biomimetic engineering, which she has recently applied to the development of a reproducible 3D model of solid tumour growth.

She has collaborated with medical physicists, materials scientists and mathematical modellers, as well as industrial partners including Oxford Optronix and Sartorius. Her experience of working across disciplines and applying engineering to a biomedical context will help the committee identify promising projects at the interface between the physical and life sciences.

Organisation: New Wave Ventures

Discipline: Venture Capital, Diagnostics and therapeutic devices

Expertise: Early stage healthcare companies and technology commercialisation

Dr Ian George is vice-chair of the Pioneer Award Committee. He is Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) of New Wave Ventures, a privately owned venture capital that invests in companies with development potential. Ian brings extensive experience in the development of early stage biotech companies  and technology commercialisation, helping the Committee identify paradigm-shifting ideas and emerging approaches to cancer prevention, detection, diagnosis and treatment.

Organisation: AstraZeneca / Addenbrooke’s Hospital Cambridge

Discipline: Clinician, cancer genomics, drug resistance

Expertise: Personalised cancer medicine, cancer genomics, computational biology

Dr Ultan McDermott is Chief Scientist in Oncology at AstraZeneca and a medical oncologist at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge. Ultan has a lifelong interest in exploring the complexities of how and why some people with cancer don’t respond to specific drugs – in particular carrying out genetic screens in different cancers to explore routes for developing personalised medicines. His clinical experience provides the Committee with critical understanding of experimental design with a patient-focus.

Title: Group leader of the Immune Regulation and Tumour Immunotherapy Group

Discipline: Cancer immunology

Expertise: Immune regulation and tumour immunotherapy

Dr Sergio Quezada is head of the immune regulation and tumour immunotherapy group at the University College London (UCL) Cancer Institute. Sergio’s group focuses on understanding the role of the body’s immune system in cancer, a promising area of research, offering fertile ground for further work and inspiration for new approaches to diagnostics and treatment.

Sergio has been awarded the John W. Strohbern Medal for excellence in biomedical research and the Cancer Research Institute (CRI-New York) investigator Award.