Centre for Cancer Research

Centre for Cancer Research overview

Scientists working in the Centre for Cancer Research are focussed on the development of novel cancer therapies and diagnostics using hypothesis-driven and AI-based approaches. The study of the molecular mechanisms underlying the development, growth and metastasis of adult and childhood cancers as well as the relationship between the innate immune system and cancer is also an important aspect of our work.

Key research areas

• • Using functional and integrated genomic approaches to understand the basic underpinnings of cancer.

• • Seeking to understand the mechanisms of metastasis and chemoresistance, with the goal of pioneering new treatments.

• • Studying how aberrant activation of embryonic signalling pathways contribute to the initiation, growth, and self-renewal of cancer.

• • Studying the mechanisms driving Acute Myeloid Leukaemia development, with the goal of identifying and developing new treatments for this devastating disease.

• • Directly identifying biologically and clinically relevant antigens, and translating these insights into actionable targets for next-generation immunotherapies.

• • Defining how disruption to innate immune signalling pathways alters the onset, progression and metastasis of lung cancers.

• • Understanding how dysregulated iron metabolism, inflammation, and immune signalling reshape the haematopoietic microenvironment and contribute to diseases such as myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), multiple myeloma, β-thalassaemia, sickle cell disease, and other bone marrow failure syndromes.

• • Investigating how inherited mutations disrupt telomere function and promote melanoma development to identify new therapeutic strategies for familial melanoma.

• • Integrating AI-driven multi omics data and large-scale functional screening to systematically uncover genetic dependencies, prioritise therapeutic targets, and enable precision oncology in childhood brain cancer.

• • Identifying the next wave of paediatric cancer-targeted therapies through a comprehensive, child-centric approach that includes generation of novel models, multi-omics characterisation, functional genomic screens, and leveraging the Childhood Cancer Model Atlas.