Another step closer to a cure

Translating research into treatment

With our emerging understanding of how DNA repair processes work – and how they very frequently go wrong in diseases such as cancer – we are now faced with an exciting challenge: how do we translate our basic research so that we can create a new generation of drugs that will target cancers in non-toxic ways and start to tackle cancers that we can’t yet treat?

We want to use our current knowledge to answer questions like:

• Can conventional chemotherapy be made more effective and far less toxic?
• Can non-toxic drugs be used to target DNA repair defects in tumour cells (an approach that has already had remarkable success in some breast cancers)?

The Genome Damage and Stability Centre at the University of Sussex is one of only a handful of centres of its kind in the world and is at the forefront of research into DNA repair.

Our scientists are unravelling the complexities of how cells repair and respond to DNA damage caused by our environment – for example, by sunlight or cigarette smoke. They are exploring how some rare hereditary diseases cause cell damage that can lead to a thousand-fold increase in susceptibility to cancer.

The work they are doing today could have a significant impact on how we treat diseases, including ovarian and colorectal cancers – and even pancreatic cancer, a disease where current therapies are very limited and where new approaches are desperately needed.

New Chair, new discoveries

A new Chair in Translational Cancer Research will develop these exciting new approaches to therapies and treatments across a range of cancer types. With the appointment of other senior academics, doctoral researchers and PhD scholars, and in partnership with the Brighton and Sussex Medical School, we will keep taking steps on the journey to find a cure for cancer in all its forms.

If you are interested in learning more about and supporting these projects, please contact

Clare Dobson on +44 (01)273 876575 or email c.dobson@sussex.ac.uk

Sue Hepburn on +44 (01)273 872657 or email s.j.hepburn@sussex.ac.uk