Cancer Research UK
Encyclopedia
Cancer Research UK is a cancer research
Cancer research
Cancer research is basic research into cancer in order to identify causes and develop strategies for prevention, diagnosis, treatments and cure....

 and awareness charity in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, formed on 4 February 2002 by the merger of The Cancer Research Campaign and the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. Its aim is to reduce the number of deaths from cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

. As the world's largest independent cancer research charity it conducts research into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the disease. Research activities are carried out in institutes, universities and hospitals across the UK, both by the charity's own employees and by its grant-funded researchers. It also provides information about cancer and runs campaigns aimed at raising awareness of the disease and influencing public policy.

Cancer Research UK's work is entirely funded by the public. It raises money through donations, legacies, community fundraising, events, retail and corporate partnerships. Over 40,000 people are regular volunteers.

History

The Imperial Cancer Research Fund (ICRF) was founded in 1902 as the Cancer Research Fund, changing its name to the Imperial Cancer Research Fund two years later. The charity grew over the next twenty years to become one of the world's leading cancer research charities. Its flagship laboratories at Lincoln's Inn Fields and Clare Hall are now known as the Cancer Research UK London Research Institute
London Research Institute
The Cancer Research UK London Research Institute is a biological research facility whose aim is to conduct research into the basic biology of cancer...

.

The British Empire Cancer Campaign (BECC) was founded in 1923, and initially drew a hostile response from ICRF and the Medical Research Council
Medical Research Council (UK)
The Medical Research Council is a publicly-funded agency responsible for co-ordinating and funding medical research in the United Kingdom. It is one of seven Research Councils in the UK and is answerable to, although politically independent from, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...

, who considered it a rival. "The Campaign", as it was colloquially known, became a very successful and powerful grant-giving body. In 1970, the charity was renamed The Cancer Research Campaign (CRC).

In 2002 the two charities agreed to merge to form Cancer Research UK, the largest independent research organisation in the world dedicated to fighting cancer (The largest, the National Cancer Institute
National Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute is part of the National Institutes of Health , which is one of 11 agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The NCI coordinates the U.S...

, is funded by the US Government). At the time of the merge, the ICRF had an annual income of £124m, while the CRC has an income of £101m.

Research

In the financial year 2010/11 the charity spent £332 million on cancer research projects (around 69% of its total income for that year). The bulk of the remaining costs were spent on trading and fundraising costs, with a small amount also spent on information services, campaigning and advocacy, administration, on other activities, or held in reserve. The charity funds the work of over 4,000 researchers, doctors and nurses throughout the UK, supports over 200 clinical trials and studies cancer and cancer risk in over a million people in the UK. Around 40% of the charity's research expenditure goes on basic laboratory research relevant to all types of cancer into the molecular basis of cancer. The research is intended to improve understanding of how cancer develops and spreads and thus provide a foundation for other research. The rest of its funding is used to support research into over 100 specific cancer types, focusing on key areas such as drug discovery
Drug discovery
In the fields of medicine, biotechnology and pharmacology, drug discovery is the process by which drugs are discovered or designed.In the past most drugs have been discovered either by identifying the active ingredient from traditional remedies or by serendipitous discovery...

 and development; prevention, early detection and imaging
Medical imaging
Medical imaging is the technique and process used to create images of the human body for clinical purposes or medical science...

; surgery and radiotherapy; and cancers where survival is still low, such as oesophageal, lung and pancreatic cancers.

On the 21st September 2011, Sky News
Sky News
Sky News is a 24-hour British and international satellite television news broadcaster with an emphasis on UK and international news stories.The service places emphasis on rolling news, including the latest breaking news. Sky News also hosts localised versions of the channel in Australia and in New...

 reported on the UK release of abiraterone
Abiraterone
Abiraterone is a drug used in castration-resistant prostate cancer . It is formulated as the prodrug abiraterone acetate and sold under the trade name Zytiga...

, a new drug
Drug
A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.In pharmacology, a...

 used to treat advanced prostate cancer
Prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, there are cases of aggressive prostate cancers. The cancer cells may metastasize from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly...

. The drug was discovered by Cancer Research UK and the Institute Of Cancer Research, before extensive testing on British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 men. Dr Heather Payne, a consultant at The Prostate Centre
The Prostate Centre
The Prostate Centre is a private men’s health clinic based in London’s Harley Street medical community. It is among the UK’s top centres for prostate care and treatment due to its team of specialist prostate surgeons, oncologists, physicians, radiologists and lifestyle therapists...

 in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, told Sky News
Sky News
Sky News is a 24-hour British and international satellite television news broadcaster with an emphasis on UK and international news stories.The service places emphasis on rolling news, including the latest breaking news. Sky News also hosts localised versions of the channel in Australia and in New...

: "This is a big breakthrough. It became quite obvious during the trial which men were being treated with the drug rather than the placebo dummy pill."

Information services

The charity provides information to the general public, the scientific community and healthcare professionals. Through CancerHelp UK, a website written in Plain English
Plain English
Plain English is a generic term for communication styles that emphasise clarity, brevity and the avoidance of technical language – particularly in relation to official government communication, including laws.The intention is to write in a manner that is easily understood by the target...

 for anyone affected by cancer, it provides information on cancer and cancer care, and a unique clinical trial
Clinical trial
Clinical trials are a set of procedures in medical research and drug development that are conducted to allow safety and efficacy data to be collected for health interventions...

s database. A specialist team of cancer information nurses provides a confidential telephone service, the Cancer Chat forum provides a place for users to talk to others affected by cancer, and mobile cancer awareness units deliver health information to locations where cancer incidence and mortality are higher than average.

Cancer Research UK also publishes a twice-monthly professional medical journal
Medical journal
A public health journal is a scientific journal devoted to the field of public health, including epidemiology, biostatistics, and health care . Public health journals, like most scientific journals, are peer-reviewed...

, the British Journal of Cancer
British Journal of Cancer
The British Journal of Cancer a twice-monthly professional medical journal of Cancer Research UK , published on their behalf by the Nature Publishing Group ....

.

Cancer Research UK have publications for the public to order and download at www.cancerresearchuk.org/leaflets.

Influencing public policy

The charity works with the UK governments to inform and improve cancer services. It worked to bring about the smokefree workplaces legislation
Smoking ban in England
A smoking ban in England and Wales, making it illegal to smoke in all enclosed public places and enclosed work places in England, came into force on 1 July 2007 as a consequence of the Health Act 2006...

 and continues to campaign for further action on smoking. The charity lobbies for better screening
Screening (medicine)
Screening, in medicine, is a strategy used in a population to detect a disease in individuals without signs or symptoms of that disease. Unlike what generally happens in medicine, screening tests are performed on persons without any clinical sign of disease....

 programmes and advises on access to new cancer medicines, amongst other issues.

Partnerships

The charity works in partnership with other organisations. These include the UK Department of Health
Department of Health (United Kingdom)
The Department of Health is a department of the United Kingdom government with responsibility for government policy for health and social care matters and for the National Health Service in England along with a few elements of the same matters which are not otherwise devolved to the Scottish,...

, the Wellcome Trust
Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13.9 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...

, the National Health Service
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...

, NICE
NICE
NICE may refer to:* National Independent Cadres and Elites in Iraq* National Institute for Coordinated Experiments, a fictional organisation in C.S...

, and the National Cancer Intelligence Network
National Cancer Intelligence Network
The National Cancer Intelligence Network , part of the National Cancer Research Institute, coordinates the collection, analysis and publication of comparative national information on diagnosis, treatment and outcomes for types of cancers and types of patient, in a way which is useful to patients,...

. It is one of the partners in the National Cancer Research Institute
National Cancer Research Institute
The National Cancer Research Institute is a partnership between the government, charity and industry in the United Kingdom that takes a strategic planning role in co-ordinating cancer research...

 which also includes the Medical Research Council (UK)
Medical Research Council (UK)
The Medical Research Council is a publicly-funded agency responsible for co-ordinating and funding medical research in the United Kingdom. It is one of seven Research Councils in the UK and is answerable to, although politically independent from, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills...

 and the Leukemia Research Fund. It is also a partner in the planned Francis Crick Institute.

Animal testing

In June 2011 it was reported that the animal rights organisation Animal Aid
Animal Aid
Animal Aid, founded in 1977, is a British animal rights organisation. The group campaigns peacefully against all forms of animal abuse and promotes a cruelty-free lifestyle. It also investigates and exposes animal cruelty....

 plans to place a series of adverts in British newspapers urging members of the public to stop giving donations to Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation
British Heart Foundation
The British Heart Foundation is a charity organisation in Britain that funds research, education, care and awareness campaigns aimed to prevent heart diseases in humans.-Foundation:...

, the Alzheimer's Society
Alzheimer's Society
Alzheimer’s Society is a United Kingdom care and research charity for people with dementia and their carers.It is a membership organisation, which works to improve the quality of life of people affected by dementia in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...

 and Parkinson's UK unless they cease their support for research which involves animal testing.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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