Newcastle University Wolfson Childhood Cancer Research Centre 

Over £50000.00 donated by Combat Cancer to date 

• Wolfson Childhood Cancer Research Centre at Newcastle University is a facility where clinical and research teams from across the city can come together to advance their understanding of how to treat childhood cancers. It brings together over 90 scientists and clinicians in state-of-the-art facilities, including the NECCR Research Laboratories. Approximately 1,600 children are diagnosed with cancer each year in the UK and the illness remains one of the main reasons why children die prematurely. Many long-term survivors suffer from chronic health problems related to their original therapy. With one in 700 young adults now a survivor of childhood cancer, debilitating side-effects are a concern. Work at the Wolfson Childhood Cancer Research Centre will focus on developing less toxic therapies with fewer side-effects, more effective treatment options for youngsters with advanced cancer and those whose illness has returned. Although £5.5m was raised to build the facility, it is not the end as fundraising continues at pace to raise at least £300,000 each year to support the new life-saving research conducted by the centre. 

 University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Unit

£2000.00 donated by Combat Cancer to date 

•  The Leicester group has a long history in the field of islet isolation and transplantation and has an established surgical and scientific team. Eight allogenic islet transplantations were completed between 1991 and 1992 and shortly after this in 1994 the clinical auto islet transplant program was established and now boasts the third largest series in the world literature. To date fifty-seven patients in Leicester have undergone total or completion pancreatectomy and islet auto-transplantation. The data from the series has demonstrated that an islet transplantation following surgical resection is a valuable addition which improves the ultimate quality of life and diabetic control. 

                   The work of the unit can be broadly divided into 5 main streams comprising of:

• Endoscopic Work (ERCP & EUS)
• Cancer & Major Resections
• Major Complex Biliary Work
• Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy & Day case Procedures
• National specialist services including supra-regional services such total pancreatectomy and autologous islet cell transplantation.