One million lives saved: How our research milestones mean more moments for people with cancer

1980s – Making radiotherapy more precise 

When it comes to radiotherapy, we go way back. In fact, our scientists led on some of the earliest radiotherapy research in the 1920s and 30s. 

And in the 1980s we made a big step forward in improving radiotherapy treatment by helping to develop and lead the first clinical trial for intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT).  

Each tumour has a unique shape, size and position in the body. This means that some parts of the tumour will be closer to healthy cells than others. IMRT produces radiation beams that vary in strength and intensity, which means that they can be carefully shaped to the tumour. Because of this, it can kill cancer cells without harming the healthy ones nearby. 

Thanks to IMRT, doctors can use radiotherapy to try and cure many more cancers. Before then, the risk of damaging vital organs near tumours meant they were often limited to smaller doses of radiation that could only relieve cancer symptoms. 

The change has been profound. In the mid-2000s, before IMRT became available at the Christie Hospital in Manchester, only 4 in 10 people treated for lung cancer there were suitable for radiotherapy with curative intent. But by the 2010s (when IMRT was fully available), almost 7 in 10 were receiving curative-intent radiotherapy.   

Now, modern radiotherapy techniques including IMRT benefit more than 130,000 people each year in the UK.  

1987 – Laying the groundwork for Herceptin, a new targeted cancer drug  

In 1984 our scientists discovered EGFR – a molecule that sits on the surface of our cells and plays an important role in cancer development. 

This was groundbreaking because it showed for the first time that our own genes, and the proteins that they code for, had the potential to cause cancer. A few years later, in 1987, that led to another important discovery: high levels of the molecule HER2 can drive breast cancer. 

This led directly to the development of a drug called Herceptin, a targeted cancer drug that precisely blocks HER2, stopping cancer cells growing and dividing.  

We now know that up to 1 in 5 breast cancers are HER2 positive. Today, Herceptin, which was approved for use in 1998, is a key part in the gold standard of care for this type of breast cancer, helping more people to survive the disease. 

1988 – Shaping tamoxifen treatment 

Tamoxifen has been called “the most important drug in the history of medical oncology”. Our funding helped doctors work out how to use it. 

Around 8 in every 10 breast cancers diagnosed in the UK are classified as ER-positive, which means that they are encouraged to grow by the hormone oestrogen, which circulates in the bloodstream. Tamoxifen turned that into their Achilles’ heel. It stops oestrogen from affecting cancer cells.  

Tamoxifen was discovered in 1966 and approved for use in the UK in 1972. But bringing drugs to market is a long and complicated process, and even after a drug is granted a licence, further ‘phase 4 clinical trials’ are needed to help to collect more information about a drug’s risks, benefits and how best to use it. 

In 1988, research we helped to fund was published that brought together and analysed all the individual clinical trials of tamoxifen, pinpointing its overall benefits for different age groups of women, and the best dosing schedules to give them. 

This landmark study helped pave the way for tamoxifen to become the powerhouse it is today. 

1994 – Discovering a new way to treat prostate cancer  

Like ER-positive breast cancers, prostate cancers rely on a hormone – testosterone – to help them grow. In 1994, our researchers found a chemical that blocked it. Then they made it into a drug: abiraterone.  

The journey from discovery to treatment was a long one, but along the way, our understanding of prostate cancer was turned upside-down.  

Scientists didn’t know this in 1994, but advanced prostate tumours can begin to produce their own testosterone. Abiraterone can stop them doing it.  

As well as being involved in early phase clinical trials of abiraterone, more recently we funded the STAMPEDE trial, one of the largest of its kind.  

Generally, abiraterone is a treatment for people with advanced prostate cancer that has spread and stopped responding to standard hormone therapy. But STAMPEDE showed that adding abiraterone to standard therapy at the start of treatment, before the disease becomes resistant to standard hormone therapy, can help boost survival. It’s changed the way doctors treat people with prostate cancer. 

2014 – Making lung cancer a priority   

Recently we’ve seen some exciting progress in understanding the mechanisms behind lung cancer. TRACERx, the biggest lung cancer study of its kind, has played a big part in that. 

Over the last few years, TRACERx has been collecting comprehensive genomic and clinical data from people with non-small cell lung cancer, which researchers hope to use to aid the design of new, targeted lung cancer treatments. 

Since then, TRACERx has helped to provide evidence for how air pollution can cause lung cancer; unravelled the secrets of how lung cancer can evolve, spread and resist treatment; and demonstrated how blood tests can be used to track lung cancer. 

And we’re not done yet. In 2022 we launched TRACERx EVO, which hopes to bring a deeper biological understanding of lung cancer evolution, prevention, diagnosis and treatment to the clinic. 

2020 – Intercepting oesophageal cancer with a ‘sponge on a string’ 

When it comes to cancer, early detection is key. And recently our researchers have helped make huge strides in early detection for oesophageal cancer.  

Some people develop a condition called Barrett’s oesophagus before cancer. While most people who have Barrett’s oesophagus won’t develop cancer, it presents an opportunity for doctors to spot a problem early and intervene before cancer develops. 

That’s where the capsule sponge comes in. It’s a simple, quick and affordable test for Barrett’s oesophagus developed by our researchers, and it can be done in a GP surgery. 

The capsule sponge is made by compressing a sponge that is attached to a string, into a small capsule. It’s easy for people to swallow, and when it enters the stomach, the capsule dissolves and releases the sponge. Within 10 minutes the sponge can be pulled back up collecting a sample of the cells lining the oesophagus.  

The capsule sponge has now entered the next phase of trials, which are looking at the practicalities of the test, and how people respond to it. 

Creating more moments 

These milestones represent just some of the progress that has been made over the past 40 years. 

It’s through the work of countless charities, researchers, clinicians and policymakers that we’re making a real difference to people affected by cancer.  

As we celebrate the moments that these milestones have made possible, we’re also looking towards the future. Cancer remains the number one cause of death in the UK, and we still have a long way to go.  

But we’re hopeful that over the next 40 years, and with the continued generosity of our supporters, the many wins from cancer research will create major boosts to cancer survival.  

Together, we are beating cancer. 

*The mid-1980s is when cancer mortality rates started falling. If they’d remained at their peak levels, there would have been more than a million additional deaths between then and now.