Yorkshire Cancer Research: Covid-delayed funding announced

Yorkshire Cancer Research is releasing funding for trials including whether vaping can wean mental health patients off tobacco

A cancer charity says it is to fund £8.3m of research which was delayed by the first wave of coronavirus.

The Yorkshire Cancer Research funding includes a £1m trial to establish whether vaping products can help people with mental illness quit smoking.

The charity said it had been forced to pause its research as clinical and academic health professionals focused on tackling Covid-19.

It has now given the go-ahead to six studies involving about 9,000 people.

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Yorkshire Cancer Research chief executive Dr Kathryn Scott said: "Our aim is that at least 2,000 more people survive cancer in Yorkshire every year, and these new trials and research programmes will bring us closer to that goal."

The vaping trial will work with mental health trusts to test whether offering a vaping starter kit to patients who smoke helps increase the number who quit successfully.

The proportion of people with mental illness who smoke is extremely high when compared with the general population, the charity said, citing a Public Health England study.

Early detection

A £3.4m trial will investigate the use of chemotherapy before surgery in patients with bowel cancer. Patients are usually given chemotherapy after surgery, but a previous international trial has shown that giving chemotherapy before an operation can lead to better surgery, reduce complications and improve survival rates.

A £1.6m clinical trial will test whether an existing medication that slows prostate growth can reduce the need for extensive surgery or radiotherapy in men with early stage prostate cancer.

A £1.5m trial, involving 6,000 people, will assess the possibility of an early detection programme for bladder cancer in Yorkshire, where survival rates are lower than the national average.

A £450,000 study will test whether radiotherapy can be made more effective for people with some types of advanced bowel cancer.

A £350,000 study will look at ways of improving pain management for patients in the region.

Dr Scott said: "Delays in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer during the coronavirus pandemic mean it's vital that we continue to press forward with our goal to address regional cancer priorities and create a beacon of patient-centred cancer research in Yorkshire.

"Our new research programmes will help prevent cancer, ensure people get the earliest possible diagnosis, and find better treatments to improve survival."

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