Institute of Cancer Research

A new study has provided insights into the biological mechanism that supports survival of hard-to-treat cancers. In the new study, led by scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research and published in Nature Communications, researchers identify a new cellular role of a protein called EXD2 nuclease and, importantly, its role in the so-called ALT (alternative […]

Scientists have discovered why breast cancer cells that have spread to the lungs may ‘wake up’ following years of sleep – forming incurable secondary tumours. Patients with oestrogen receptor positive (ER+) breast cancer – the most common type – have a continued risk of their cancer recurring in another part of their body for many […]

A precision medicine for early-stage breast cancer has been approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).   Developed by AstraZeneca and Merck & Co (MSD) under the brand name Lynparza, the treatment is a precision medicine which blocks DNA damage response (DDR) in cells or tumours that have a deficiency in homologous recombination repair (HRR), such […]

Precision medicine start-up Vesynta has become the first medtech company to move into a laboratory at south London’s latest incubator space.   The company, which was spun out from the Adaptive and Responsive Nanomaterials group at University College London, has moved into the Innovation Gateway at The London Cancer Hub in Sutton. The start-up is developing a […]

Non-coding or ‘junk’ DNA could contribute to the development of certain cancers due to how it disrupts the replication of the genome, scientists have discovered.   A team from The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London reconstituted the entire process of DNA replication in a test tube in order to understand it more completely.  The team […]

A new research centre has been established in London to help discover new approaches to treating cancer.   The Centre for Protein Degradation will be based in The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) in London and will focus on targeted protein degradation to help researchers discover new research tools and treatments for hard-to-treat cancers.  The centre […]

Scientists revealed in a new study how gut bacteria contribute to the progression of advanced prostate cancers and their resistance to hormone therapy by providing an alternative source of growth-promoting androgens, or male hormones.  Hormone therapy is the standard of care for advanced prostate cancer and works by lowering levels of androgens. But researchers found […]

A new combination of targeted drugs for a type of ovarian cancer has shown promising results in an early clinical trial, shrinking tumours in half of patients. The combination of drugs, which both work by blocking signals cancer cells need to grow, could offer a new treatment option for women with an uncommon type of ovarian cancer […]

The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London has discovered an investigational drug called NXP800, which cancer patients are set to receive for the first time. It was discovered in a Phase I clinical trial sponsored by an oncology-focused biopharmaceutical company, Nuvectis Pharma.  The investigational oral drug inhibits the so-called Heat Shock Factor-1 (HSF1) pathway, and was discovered […]

Immuno-oncology has advanced greatly through T cell-based therapeutic approaches (particularly immune checkpoint inhibitors). However, immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) aren’t efficacious in all patients, and they carry risks. What are these risks? Courtney Ferrebee, PhD, Field Applications Scientist, Taconic Biosciences speaks to Lu Rahman. Preclinical in vivo models serve as important tools for studying the mechanisms […]

AstraZeneca and MSD’s Koselugo (selumetinib) has been granted conditional approval in the European Union for the treatment of symptomatic, inoperable plexiform neurofibromas (PN) in paediatric patients with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) aged three years and above. NF1 is a debilitating genetic condition affecting one in 3,000 individuals worldwide. In 30-50% of people with NF1, tumours […]

The establishment of Innovation Gateway, a high-quality incubator space for life-science companies at The London Cancer Hub in Sutton, is underway. This is a significant step in realising the aims of The London Cancer Hub, a partnership between the London Borough of Sutton and The Institute of Cancer Research, that is attempting to establish an […]

Cancer research in the UK is at risk through a combination of proposed government funding cuts for UK science and the impact of the pandemic on charity funding, warns a leading cancer research institute. The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) is revealing reductions of as much as a fifth in some of its key funding […]

The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London, has discovered a drug that could counteract drug resistance in patients with cancers including acute myeloid leukaemia. It has entered a Phase I clinical trial at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust. The drug, now called EP0042, is a dual inhibitor of cancer-driving proteins from the Aurora and […]

Launching a dual-pronged attack on tumours using a combination of two innovative precision medicines could treat patients with multiple common cancers, a new clinical trial shows. It is the first trial to use the pioneering genetically targeted drug olaparib – already licensed for ovarian, breast and prostate cancer – together with a promising new medicine, […]