MCRC Director's Update

Hello. Welcome back to the first MCRC Director’s Update of 2021 following a brief pause for the past several months.

The first quarter of 2021 has been an eventful and busy period for the MCRC Strategic Operations Team and I am excited to recommence our regular engagement.

Starting with more recent developments, the MCRC Strategic team have been hard at work spearheading the renewal of the Cancer Research UK Manchester Centre, one of only a handful of designated Major Centres and a key centre within the Manchester cancer research nexus. This has been a large volume of work, and it has been exceptionally rewarding and uplifting to hear about the innovative science and plans that we aim to include in our renewed centre. While we patiently await the outputs of this EOI, due next month, it provides exceptional evidence that COVID-19 pandemic has only paused, not cancelled, our research activities.

I am also pleased that this is my first update to be delivered though our new website. The MCRC was envisaged as an umbrella to unify and strengthen research activities across Manchester, and our new website is the external face by which we can demonstrate this capability. Our new website is the first step in a phased development that provides an external face to the vast research activities from our partners, world-leading academic researchers, and practice-influencing clinicians.

Over the coming weeks and months, our communications team will continue to develop and refine this content to ensure it reflects the long-term vision and mission of the MCRC.

On an international scale, next Tuesday, I’m speaking alongside friend and colleague Dr George Njoroge at the 5^th UK- East Africa Virtual Health Summit about the ongoing strategic partnership between Manchester and Kenya. The work we are developing in Kenya takes advantage of both ecosystems and will establish a new programmes in early detection, precision medicine and genomics analysis. Registration is still open and can be accessed via the University of Manchester website (27^th April 2021 09:00 – 16:15).

I’m also pleased to see that following a smaller scale event held on World Cancer Day, 4^th February 2021, the Greater Manchester Cancer team are organising a ‘Virtual Cancer Week’. The event will combine research seminars and panel discussions with sessions for service users and representatives. We’ve been working with GM Cancer on the programme and are confident that there will be sessions within the week that everyone will find useful and enjoy. Registration is still open for all via Eventbrite (24^th – 28^th May 2021 09.00 – 16.00).

And finally, Manchester has been chosen to host the 2021 ACED Summer School. Between the 9th and 12th of August 2021, our Summer School will delve into the topics of early detection science set against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and the wider health inequalities it has highlighted. I’d encourage any PhD students, postdocs, or academic colleagues to attend what is sure to be an engaging and interactive week of seminars, panel discussions and networking sessions. You can register for the event via Eventbrite.

In other news from the past few months:

• Congratulations to Professor Emma Crosbie and her team, who have been shortlisted for the Making a Difference awards for their work on Testing women with womb cancer for Lynch syndrome. The award ceremony will be held virtually on the 12^th May 2021 17:40 – 19:15
• As part of our activities held on World Cancer Day, colleagues from the research, service and patient communities worked with Mancunian poet Tony Walsh to inspire the poem “Init love?”
• Congratulations to Professor Ananya Choudhury who takes on the role of Editor-in-Chief of Clinical Oncology from 1st June 2021 
• Congratulations to Professor Fiona Thistlethwaite, who has been named as the new Clinical Director of the NIHR Manchester Clinical Research Facility at The Christie, where she has been interim Director since the start of the year.

I look forward to more regular communication with you all in the coming months. In future months, we will also be inviting updates from other key members of the MCRC strategic team to provide updates on key initiatives including the Paterson Redevelopment Project. Take care.

Rob