Our research in Belfast

What we're doing now

Thanks to research, we’ve made great progress and today 1 in 2 people will survive their cancer for 10 years or more. And our ambitious goal is to see 3 in 4 surviving by 2034. Our research in Northern Ireland and across the UK will help bring forward a day when all cancers are cured.

At Queen’s University Belfast, Professor Manuel Salto-Tellez is leading a £3.9 million UK-wide research partnership to improve cancer diagnosis and treatment by establishing a new training programme for molecular pathologists.

Dr Chris Cardwell is looking at whether routine prescription medications can alter cancer risk. He’s using anonymised GP records to look at exposure to 154 medications in people who have developed cancer, compared to those who have not.

Professor Helen Coleman is conducting a population-based study to try and identify biomarkers which could help predict which patients with Barrett’s Oesophagus (a condition where the cells lining the oesophagus look abnormal) will go on to develop oesophageal cancer.

Belfast is home to an Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre (ECMC), which brings together lab scientists and cancer doctors from local universities and NHS trusts to speed up the flow of ideas and new treatments from the lab to the clinic. Our ECMC in Belfast is jointly supported by Cancer Research UK and the National Institute for Health Research in Northern Ireland.

Our Senior Research Nurse in Belfast facilitates the delivery of high-quality clinical trials and studies, getting new treatments into the clinic sooner. 

How we have made a difference so far

By sharing their expertise, scientists, doctors and nurses are improving the care of patients across Northern Ireland and beyond. For example, in Northern Ireland:

• We have supported and continue to help fund the new Northern Ireland Biobank which collects and stores samples from many patients with different types of cancer. This biobank provides a valuable resource for scientists in Belfast and across the UK.
• We’ve helped to fund the  Molecular Pathology Laboratory which is helping to diagnose cancers more accurately and support researchers developing precision (personalised) therapies.
• Our Belfast scientists identified an important molecule known as c-FLIP, which stops bowel cancer cells responding to chemotherapy. With over 1,200 people diagnosed with bowel cancer in Northern Ireland every year, this discovery could have a huge impact on improving treatment for people with the disease.