{"id":26697,"date":"2020-12-27T09:23:06","date_gmt":"2020-12-27T09:23:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/?p=18185"},"modified":"2024-11-03T15:15:50","modified_gmt":"2024-11-03T15:15:50","slug":"cancer-research-in-2020-a-spotlight-on-manchester","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/cancer-research-in-2020-a-spotlight-on-manchester\/","title":{"rendered":"Cancer research in 2020: A spotlight on Manchester"},"content":{"rendered":"
Ariel view of Manchester <\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Manchester_hero-300×168.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Manchester_hero.jpg”><\/p><\/div>

2020 has certainly been tough, and no industry has been left untouched by the effects of the pandemic. And while the same undoubtedly goes for our work<\/a><\/span>, we\u2019ve once again been inspired by the resilience and determination of our researchers, who have continued their lifesaving work despite the ongoing challenges and are adjusting to a \u2018new normal\u2019. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

We spoke to 4 of our researchers<\/span> based in Manchester,<\/span> working across a broad spectrum of cancer research \u2013 from technology and robotics to inflammation \u2013 about working through the pandemic, and what the new year may hold.<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

Dr Julia Morris<\/span>, who<\/span> work<\/span>s<\/span> in a southerly suburb of the famous Northern City<\/span> at the Manchester Cancer Research Centre<\/span>,<\/span> spent the last year<\/span> working<\/span> to understand<\/span> the complex behaviour<\/span> of<\/span> ovarian cancer, with the help of unique living bioba<\/span>nk<\/span>.<\/span>  <\/span><\/p>\n

And<\/span> 13 miles south<\/span> in<\/span> a<\/span> leafy<\/span> part<\/span> of<\/span> Cheshire<\/span> sits our Manchester Institute, based at<\/span> the innovative<\/span> Alderley Park<\/span> R<\/span>esearch<\/span> C<\/span>entre<\/span>.<\/span> Here, Steve Bagley<\/span> oversees<\/span> some of the<\/span> leading-edge<\/span> technology used by our researchers.<\/span> In th<\/span>at<\/span> same Institute, Charlotte Bell is finishing the final year of her PhD,<\/span> focussing<\/span> on the role of inflammation and<\/span> cancer<\/span>,<\/span> while<\/span> down the corridor<\/span>, Professor Tim<\/span> So<\/span>mervaille<\/span> is leading a group who<\/span> are making great strides in the<\/span> development of a new<\/span> treatment<\/span> for<\/span> acute<\/span> myeloid leukaemia.<\/span><\/p>\n

Dr Julia Morris: \u201cThe lab is showing really great resilience despite everything\u201d<\/h2>\n

Dr Julia Morris is a part of Professor Stephen Taylor\u2019s lab at the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, where work on ovarian cancer centres around an extraordinary living biobank of ovarian cancer<\/a> samples.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe receive samples from patients before, during and after their treatment. So it\u2019s like we are studying their cells in real time. We observe how they respond to drugs, how the cancers cells grow and what they look like,\u201d says Morris. Members of the lab extract these cells and grow them and maintain them, keeping them alive under artificial conditions.<\/p>\n

Morris joined the Taylor lab back in January, studying if it\u2019s possible to sensitise cancer cells to certain treatments by experimenting with different drug combinations. And so far, she\u2019s loved it. \u201cWe\u2019re very close-knit lab, which was lovely to come into. We would always eat lunch together and enjoyed bouncing ideas off each other all day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Scientist in the lab <\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Julia_cropped.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Julia_cropped.jpg” loading=”lazy” class=”size-full wp-image-18190″ src=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Julia_cropped.jpg” alt=”Scientist in the lab ” width=”200″ height=”200″ srcset=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Julia_cropped.jpg 200w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Julia_cropped-150×150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Julia_cropped-96×96.jpg 96w” sizes=”(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px”><\/p>

Dr Julia Morris works on ovarian cancer at the Manchester Cancer Research Centre.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

But all that stopped in March, as the country went into a national lockdown and both the Institute and the Manchester Cancer Research Centre were closed. Before the doors closed, the team quickly froze all the cells that make up the living ovarian biobank, to make sure they would be preserved. \u201cWe weren\u2019t growing any new cells over lockdown, because we didn\u2019t have access to the building. And so in that sense, we did lose a big chunk of time and potential data, but it is what it is, we couldn\u2019t have avoided that.\u201d<\/p>\n

And when lockdown began, Morris\u2019 day-to-day role changed very suddenly. \u201cMy work, rather than looking like a being a practical postdoc in the lab, turned into doing lots more analysis, reading and hypothesising about various projects.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the lab closed, Morris was furloughed for a couple of months during lockdown and instead spent some of her time volunteering at one of the COVID-19 Lighthouse Labs<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was really intense, but at the same time, I\u2019m really glad that I got a chance to contribute to our fight against COVID-19.\u201d As soon as they were able to, some of Morris\u2019s colleagues went back in the lab and were able to unfreeze the cell lines and get them growing again. \u201cIt\u2019s just like pressing play after pausing the growth of your cells,\u201d says Morris.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re back up to where we were pre pandemic now, and we\u2019re receiving samples again from the Christie, which is great.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe lab is showing really great resilience and despite everything, we were awarded grant this year and lab morale is up. It\u2019s been it\u2019s been a tough year, but I\u2019m really proud of everyone who is a part of our lab.\u201d<\/p>\n

For next year, Morris is looking forward to wrapping up several of her experiments from 2020. \u201cI am also looking forward to getting a paper out hopefully, about my drug combination studies, and excited to eventually be starting a new project.\u201d<\/p>\n

Steve Bagley: \u201cIt\u2019s a case of having to adapt\u201d<\/h2>\n

As well as the scientists like Morris who work in the labs, our Centres and Institutes are fuelled by a whole host of expert teams who help to run things behind the scenes. Steve Bagley is one of those experts.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur team covers not just microscopes, but also things like imaging and high content screening, looking for new drugs and biomarker discovery.\u201d explains Steve. \u201cSo we run a whole lot of equipment that you wouldn\u2019t necessarily find in a microscope laboratory, a lot of automation and a lot of robots, to get through the samples as fast as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

The team\u2019s remit seems to get larger every year, as researchers at the Institute ask more and more complex questions.<\/p>\n

Currently, the team is working alongside 27 research groups across the Institute. And pressing pause isn\u2019t that easy.<\/p>\n

Researcher with PPE<\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Steve_cropped.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Steve_cropped.jpg” loading=”lazy” class=”size-full wp-image-18191″ src=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Steve_cropped.jpg” alt=”Researcher with PPE” width=”200″ height=”200″ srcset=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Steve_cropped.jpg 200w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Steve_cropped-150×150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Steve_cropped-96×96.jpg 96w” sizes=”(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px”><\/p>

Steve Bagley produced PPE with his 3D printer over lockdown.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cWith the equipment we use, when you turn things off, things can deteriorate,\u201d says Bagley. \u201cAn X-ray machine, for example, if that\u2019s not run on almost a daily basis, then the generator starts to deteriorate. And that\u2019s a \u00a350,000 repair bill. And we\u2019ve got lots of instruments like that, that are designed to be run all the time and you can\u2019t turn them off.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the Institute was closed down, Bagley was frequently going into the labs, \u201cchecking the systems, calibrating them, standardising them and making sure they were right.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut as I was doing that there was this call amongst the 3D printing community about how to help with the lack of PPE.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bagley and the team have 3D printing facilities which they use for making certain lab parts that aren\u2019t available commercially. \u201cAnd what we realised quite quickly is that the band that goes around the head, if we could print those, then the shield part itself could be any form of clear plastic.\u201d<\/p>\n

The system the team have has a high throughput, so at one point, Bagley was producing 40-50 of the head bands a day.<\/a> \u201cThe first batch went to the Christie here in Manchester, but later we sent them to other NHS departments around the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since PPE demands began to decline, the team have turned their focus back to their own work. \u201cWe\u2019ve lost a huge amount of time in our research, so now it\u2019s about trying to catch up again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Right now, labs at the Institute are only at 20% occupancy in order to adhere to social distancing, but samples are coming thick and fast \u201cWe\u2019ve scanned 12,000 histology slides since opening back up in the summer.\u201d This impressive volume of work has been made possible as lots of the equipment, including microscopes and analysis software, can be set up from home.<\/p>\n

As well as keeping on top of the samples, Bagley is also involved in designing a new laboratory for his team, after part of the Institute burnt down in 2017. \u201cThe new laboratory has been designed for automation. So it\u2019s actually designed for more robots, and we kind of see that this is the way to carry on,\u201d says Bagley.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve learnt some really valuable lessons from COVID. I think one of them is that we want to follow this path of image analysis and using artificial intelligence. It allows people to work, wherever they can from home, or they could even be at a conference, but they can still make sure their analysis is being done.\u201d<\/p>\n

Charlotte Bell: \u201cIt\u2019s still quite far from normal\u201d<\/h2>\n

Charlotte Bell is completing the final year of her PhD, working in Santiago Zelenay\u2019s lab at the Manchester Institute.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a lab, we\u2019re really interested in how what we call \u2018different flavours\u2019 of inflammation can impact tumour growth, with a focus on the immune response to cancer,\u201d says Bell.<\/p>\n

Bell is focusing on how inflammation affects cancer cells in the context of anti-cancer drugs. \u201cI\u2019ve been looking a lot at chemotherapy or cytotoxic treatments, and how they can impact inflammation within tumours.\u201d<\/p>\n

Scientist in the lab <\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Charlotte_cropped.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Charlotte_cropped.jpg” loading=”lazy” class=”size-full wp-image-18192″ src=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Charlotte_cropped.jpg” alt=”Scientist in the lab ” width=”200″ height=”200″ srcset=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Charlotte_cropped.jpg 200w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Charlotte_cropped-150×150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Charlotte_cropped-96×96.jpg 96w” sizes=”(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px”><\/p>

Charlotte Bell is completing her PhD at our Manchester Institute.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

As the national lockdown was looming over the Institute back in March, Bell and the rest of the lab rushed to finish off whatever experiments they could in the remaining few days. \u201cApart from that, we very quickly had to freeze down all of our cell lines, to try and minimise the impact that it would have on our experiments,\u201d says Bell. \u201cLuckily, we didn\u2019t lose anything.\u201d<\/p>\n

And while some members of the lab were able to go in while the lab was shut to look after experiments that were being carried out on mouse models, most worked from home. \u201cThe pandemic has shone a light on the teamwork element of our lab\u201d says Bell. \u201cNormally, we would all kind of go in and do our own little bits, but I think working as a team and helping each other with experiments has been a big, big asset for us lately.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the lockdown, Bell analysed data from the previous few months and prepared for her next experiments. Thankfully, when she finally returned to the lab, she was able to pick up her work quite easily. \u201cCancer cells are obviously quite resilient, so getting them back up and growing again isn\u2019t too difficult\u201d.<\/p>\n

But while getting started has been straightforward, it\u2019s not been quick.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve really had to restrict the number of people that can go in certain rooms and certain labs. Because of that we really have to plan our time and really organise how we are doing experiments. It\u2019s still quite far from normal, I think, but it\u2019s workable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bell is due to finish her PhD next September, although it\u2019s possible that her studies may be extended by a further 6 months. \u201cI am hoping that might be the case for me, because it would be good to just have a bit more time working on my project. Then after that, I am really hoping to do a postdoc.\u201d<\/p>\n

Prof Tim Somervaille: \u2018We\u2019ve all been working hard to make the best out of a difficult situation\u2019<\/h2>\n

Prof Tim Somervaille is a clinician scientist who splits his time between the hospital and the lab. He works on myeloid blood cancers such as acute myeloid leukaemia<\/a>. He is a group leader at our Manchester Institute.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a clinician for a quarter of the week and a scientist for the rest the week,\u201d says Somervaille. \u201cI treat my patients at The Christie hospital and I lead my research group in the CRUK Manchester Institute. Somervaille\u2019s lab works to understand the biology of blood cancers, so that new treatments can be developed and advanced into the clinic.<\/p>\n

Tim Sommervaille<\/p>

” data-medium-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Time_cropped.jpg” data-large-file=”https:\/\/scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Time_cropped.jpg” loading=”lazy” class=”size-full wp-image-18193″ src=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Time_cropped.jpg” alt=”Tim Sommervaille” width=”200″ height=”200″ srcset=”https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Time_cropped.jpg 200w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Time_cropped-150×150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/zniup3zx6m0ydqfpv9y6sgtf-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Time_cropped-96×96.jpg 96w” sizes=”(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px”><\/p>

Professor Tim Somervaille is a group leader at our Manchester Institute.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Despite disruptions, Somervaille\u2019s lab has got a lot done this year. \u201cA really good news story for us has been that we published a paper in the Journal of Clinical Oncology,\u201d says Somervaille. \u201cIt is a report of a Phase 1 clinical trial of a drug called iadademstat which is a type of LSD1 inhibitor which we have evaluated as a possible treatment for acute myeloid leukaemia.\u201d<\/p>\n

And according to Somervaille, it\u2019s the culmination of nearly a decade of research- from early cell studies in his lab in Manchester to the latest clinical trial.<\/p>\n

But more importantly, it\u2019s contributed to significant interest worldwide from numerous pharmaceutical companies, who are actively exploring the LSD1 target in a variety of clinical settings.<\/p>\n

But despite this impressive progress, the pandemic brought up many challenges for the lab.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t have very much notice. And, you know, everybody\u2019s experiments just had to be terminated,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s been very difficult. Students were anxious about their remaining time to complete their PhDs and postdocs have been worried about their grant funding running out. And for pretty much three and a half, nearly four months, it was not possible to go into the laboratory to do any work at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

Since the lab has opened back up again, the Somervaille group has been slowly but surely returning to the work they were doing pre-pandemic. And they\u2019re very much looking forward to next year. \u201cI think we\u2019ve all been working hard to make the best out of a difficult situation. But what I\u2019m looking forward to next year is things getting back to normal, so that we can drive forward our programme of translational research, including a number of exciting projects using leading edge technologies to understand some fundamental mechanisms of leukaemia<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what that\u2019s what gets me up in the morning to, to push things forward. So that, you know, in the longer term, hopefully, patients will benefit from the insights from the studies that we\u2019re all involved in and which are funded by Cancer Research UK.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lilly<\/em><\/p>\n

More on this topic<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n

Source<\/a><\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dr Julia Morris works on ovarian cancer at the Manchester Cancer Research Centre. But all that stopped in March, as the country went into a national lockdown and both the Institute and the Manchester Cancer Research Centre were closed. Before the doors closed, the team quickly froze all the cells that make up the living […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5137],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26697","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26697","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26697"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26697\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44026,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26697\/revisions\/44026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26697"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26697"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ogkologos.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26697"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}