York researchers have received a £2.5 million to help transform future care for people diagnosed withblood cancers.
Funding will help researchers expand their understanding of how people are diagnosed and treated.
There are more than 100 types of blood cancer, including leukaemia, lymphoma and
myeloma. They are most commonly diagnosed in older adults, although they can affect people of any age.
The latest investment by Cancer Research UK, is for the Haematological
Malignancy Research Network (HMRN) based at the University of York. The HMRN works with 14 hospitals across Yorkshire and the Humber, tracking data on every person diagnosed with a blood cancer in the region.
The funding will enable researchers to investigate health inequalities in blood cancer outcomes, including why people living in more deprived areas may not respond as well to treatment, despite receiving the same care.
Improve outcomes
Around 3,000 people are diagnosed in the region each year, providing a uniquely accurate dataset across all types of blood cancer. The new funding will help researchers expand their understanding of how people are diagnosed, how well treatments are working, and what can be done to improve outcomes for patients, not just in Yorkshire, but across the UK.
The network is led by Professor Alexandra Smith, an epidemiologist at the University
of York and a founding member of HMRN.
Professor Smith said: "It wasn't until 2001 that there was worldwide consensus
around the diagnostic criteria for blood cancers. Before that, there was no accurate
population based data and no consistent way of classifying or treating these
diseases.
"HMRN was one of the first studies in the world to publish accurate information
showing how many people were being diagnosed with different subtypes of blood
cancer and how they responded to treatment."
Uniquely placed
Working closely with clinicians across the region and the state-of-the-art
Haematological Malignancy Diagnostic Service (HMDS) at St James's Hospital in
Leeds, every patient sample undergoes advanced testing in one central laboratory
and is classified to the highest standards.
This approach allows clinicians and researchers to compare like for like cases, track trends over time, and understand the real-world impact of new cancer drugs and treatments in everyday NHS settings.
Professor Smith added: "HMRN's regional population of around four million people has a similar age and gender profile to the UK as a whole, and a comparable socioeconomic and population distribution to England. These similarities mean we're uniquely placed to generate findings that can be generalised nationally and help inform policy and clinical decision-making."
New drugs
All patients diagnosed with a blood cancer in the region are automatically included in
the HMRN database. Many also choose to actively contribute further, by sharing
information about their lives and experiences, helping clinicians and researchers
identify patterns that could save lives in the future.
Professor Debra Howell, Deputy Director of the Epidemiology and Cancer Statistics
Group (ECSG) at the University of York, who leads the patient involvement work for
the HMRN, said: "Our work is very much a collaboration with patients. Their insight
and additional support play a crucial role in driving our research forward.
"While individual patients may not always see immediate changes to their own care,
their anonymous data has already helped shape how older people are treated, how
newly approved drugs are used in the NHS, and how patients on long term oral
therapies can be better supported."
Vital work
Researchers will also continue vital work into vulnerable diagnostic groups, including
how patients respond to infections and vaccinations, such as COVID19.
Lydia Bird, spokesperson for Cancer Research UK said: "Cancer Research UK's
funding for world-class work like this is made possible by our fundraisers and
supporters. All of us can support the research that will help to beat cancer.
"We're proud to support the exceptional HMRN team. Our funding will help
researchers better understand different types of blood cancer and why treatment
works better for some people than others."
