NEWS RELEASE
Issued on behalf of the Wales Cancer Institute
Date: January 24, 2006
With Cancer Factfile sent separately

TEAMWORK THE KEY TO CANCER CURE

A MAJOR cancer research conference in Wales will promote the partnership being forged to find new drugs and treatments in the fight against the world's biggest killer.

Leading cancer experts, consultants, laboratory, NHS and university researchers, patient groups, health professionals, charities and government organisations will all take part in the two-day conference in Cardiff.

Called ‘Collaborating in Cancer Research 2006', the event is being organised by the Wales Cancer Institute and staged at the Millennium Stadium on March 8 and 9.

It will be the first time in Wales that all the cancer research bodies and individuals working in the area have had the chance to come together to focus on current research and developments in cancer.

Up to 300 delegates from across Wales – together with specialists from other parts of the UK – will listen to keynote speeches and take part in discussion forums on subjects ranging from human cancer tissue donation to the very latest drugs being trialled for the frontline fight against the disease.

Aimed at anyone working in or with an interest in cancer research, the conference will also include a question-and-answer session in which cancer patients will have the chance to ask researchers and clinicians about their work.

Dame Deidre Hine, Chair of the WCI Partners Forum, said: “Finding new drugs and treatments for cancer patients can only be achieved through collaboration and partnership in which all the agencies involved work together.

“In Wales we are fortunate to have a central partnership in the Wales Cancer Institute which aims to translate the quality research being conducted in the laboratories and clinical trials into new cancer drugs and treatments for patients more quickly and more effectively.

“This is an exciting opportunity to further develop a ‘cancer research community' in Wales which will for the first time bring together all the relevant stakeholders in cancer research under one roof.”

Professor David Wynford-Thomas, Dean of Medicine at Cardiff University , said: “This conference will be another milestone in the development of an integrated approach to cancer research in Wales to the ultimate benefit of cancer patients throughout the principality.”

Among the conference speakers will be Professor Julian Peto, Cancer Research UK chair of epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine; Dr Nik Zeps, director of the Western Australian Research Tissue Network; and Cancer Research UK clinical director Dr Richard Sullivan.

Notes for editors:

• The Wales Cancer Institute was launched in January 2005 with the backing of Professor Alex Markham, chief executive of Cancer Research UK .
• The Institute is a central partnership of collaborative research groups to increase the quantity and quality of cancer research in Wales .
• The virtual institute brings together researchers, charities, clinicians, universities, NHS and government organisations from all over Wales .
• The partnership enables researchers and clinicians to work on new drugs and new treatments for the benefit of patients around Wales .
• The Institute promotes the exchange of intellectual ideas and data between members and disseminates information across the whole spectrum of cancer researchers in Wales .
• Its aim is to facilitate new collaborative research groupings, cutting across traditional department and institutional divides and based on mutual exchange of ideas, expertise and technology.
• The Institute will seek internal and external funding to increase opportunities for research fellowships and studentships.

For any queries please contact Peter Bibby at Effective Communication on 029 2066 0119, or email pbibby@effcom.co.uk or Julia Price, Administrator for the Wales Cancer Institute on 029 2068 2102, or email pricejm@Cardiff.ac.uk