Sheffield Cancer Research Centre Strategy 2014-2017

Strategy

Our aim is for the Sheffield Centre to remain distinct, in terms of scope and research expertise, from other research groupings within the United Kingdom, focusing on our existing three areas of translational excellence; bone oncology, tumour microenvironment and genetics/genome instability. Further development of these areas of strength will be made and links between laboratory-based research groups and the clinic ensured through collaborations with the Sheffield ECMC and the Cancer Clinical Trials Centre (CCTC).

Specifically we will:
• Integrate basic, translational and clinical research across these three areas of research strength, incorporating our ECMC and linking closely with the Cancer Research Clinical Network.
• Build stronger links across the Medical School, with the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals (STH) NHS Foundation Trust, and both the Science and Engineering faculties around our three translational research priorities.
• Work with other centres, especially Leeds, to further enhance our capabilities and critical mass in these areas of focus.
• Concentrate our research priorities into specific clinical areas: metastases (especially bone), breast, bladder, lung and specific rare tumours.
• Develop a new clinical focus for research in brain tumours, building on the existing excellent neuroscience research and infrastructure within Sheffield.
• Train the next generation of clinical and laboratory based researchers.

Future work

Our future research will revolve around our existing three areas of translational excellence; bone oncology, tumour microenvironment and genetics/genomic instability. To underpin this, we will utilise our local expertise in basic science including model systems (drosophila and zebra-fish) within the MRC Centre for Developmental and Biomedical Genetics and the RNAi screening infrastructure in Biomedical Sciences (BMS), our newly acquired next generation sequencing (NGS) facilities based at Sheffield Children’s’ Hospital (SCH), the newly expanded and refurbished mass spectrometry suite within BMS and the Sheffield Centre for Stem Cell Biology.

Clinical translation of laboratory findings and provision of clinical samples for biomarker and therapeutic target discovery will be facilitated by our ECMC. We will have new specialist treatment facilities available from late 2013.

We have a well established and very active CCTC and specialist expertise both within oncology and across other disciplines in survivorship, thereby providing opportunities for research in our priority areas right through from basic discovery through to clinical validation and ultimately the long term implications of future developments.

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Sheffield Cancer Research Centre Strategy 2011-2013

Our goal is to use the Sheffield Cancer Research Centre to build on the significant body of high quality cancer research already being undertaken in Sheffield and forge this into the strongest possible comprehensive regional centre conducting excellent research with a global impact.

The Centre will:

• Bring together the activities, strategy and management of researchers currently funded by CR-UK, YCR and WPH CC into the Centre for the benefit of all stake-holders.

• Include strong components of basic, translational and clinical research, working together to address important clinical and scientific questions.

• Build on our Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre areas of focus in bone oncology and vascular targeting.

• Integrate the existing strengths in clinical trials, imaging technologies, genomic instability and molecular/stem cell biology.

• Create improved opportunities for basic science groups to translate discoveries into novel biomarkers and therapies.

Our specific aims for research, training and consumer and community engagement are:

• Increase the number of successful programmes, projects and clinical trials funded by CR-UK and YCR.
• Clinical development of at least one therapeutic strategy identified from our laboratory programmes.
• Provide start-up funding for pilot multi-disciplinary cross-faculty projects, with particular emphasis on developmental biology and engineering and new collaborations with industry.
• Provide a mechanism for identifying translational opportunities for basic research and funding for in vivo proof of concept studies.
• Strengthen the opportunities for co-ordinated research activities between CR-UK, YCR and WPH CC.
• Build on our excellent partnerships with STH and ScHARR to attract increased NIHR funding to support cancer research
• Establish an integrated PhD training programme, incorporating areas of national skills shortage.
• Provide enhanced training for clinical fellows, including opportunities for cross-faculty research.
• Establish post-doctoral training fellowships for the brightest and best candidates, building on nationally recognized good practice in this area.
• Develop a local out-reach programme to enhance fund-raising, contribute to national awareness of medical research and encourage public engagement with science, building on our nationally recognised good practice in consumer representation in clinical cancer research.