Law firm's cancer treatment grant for Keele project
Law firm Slater & Gordon has awarded Keele and the University Hospital of North Midlands a grant to research the treatment of asbestos-related cancers.
The project, which has been awarded £12,300, will improve the prognosis and treatment for people diagnosed with mesothelioma and lung cancer.
The research team were presented with the grant at a ceremony held at Royal College of Surgeons, London on Wednesday, January 28.
John Webber, Deputy Chairman of Slater & Gordon, praised the application for how it could benefit the lives of thousands of people.
Mr Webber said: “The team at Keele University and University Hospital of North Midlands have proposed research to help the early diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer and mesothelioma.
“We wholeheartedly support this important research as we see firsthand just how tragic respiratory illnesses can be and the impact that it has not only on the individual, but their family and friends."
Dr Josep Sulé-Suso, Associate Specialist and Senior Lecturer in Oncology at University Hospital of North Midlands, said the funding will have a significant impact on the success of the project.
Dr Sulé-Suso said: “This funding will help to better understand the volatiles released by lung cancer cells in the presence of chemotherapy drugs.
“This should help in the future development of a non-invasive method of using breath analysis to help in both early diagnosis of lung cancer and real-time assessment of tumour response to treatment.”
The researchers are among the first to benefit from the law firm’s new philanthropic fund which will see £500,000 donated to fund innovative projects which have the potential to improve lives.
Slater & Gordon launched the philanthropic fund to boost research into treatments for workers diagnosed with asbestos related diseases or who have suffered catastrophic spinal or brain injuries.