Topic description and stories

We are are helping to end death and disease caused by cancer, saving more lives by detecting early and personalising treatments. The experiences of patients and their families shape every stage of research and of plans for the Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital, as we work together to change the story of cancer.

Cambridge is changing the story of cancer

15 July 2024

Find out about groundbreaking cancer research at Cambridge, including our planned new hospital, how we're studying the earliest stages of cancer, how AI is helping fight the disease, and the patients playing a key role in our work.

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Breast cancer patients standing with their arms around each other's shoulders

Smarter targeted radiotherapy just as effective for low-risk breast cancer and reduces risk of side effects

15 Jul 2025

Thousands of women who undergo radiotherapy for low-risk breast cancer could be spared some of the side effects of treatment after a study confirmed...

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Capsule sponge

‘Pill-on-a-thread’ could replace endoscopies for half of all patients being monitored for oesophageal cancer risk

23 Jun 2025

Endoscopies could be replaced by far less invasive capsule sponge tests for half of all patients with Barrett’s oesophagus, a known precursor to...

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Scientist pipetting samples into eppendorf tube

Cambridge researchers awarded Advanced Grants from the European Research Council

17 Jun 2025

Eleven senior researchers at the University of Cambridge have been awarded Advanced Grants from the European Research Council – the highest number of...

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Stock image of the Edison histotripsy system

Cambridge to offer cutting-edge ultrasound treatment for NHS cancer patients in UK first

10 Jun 2025

NHS patients at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, will become the first in the UK and Europe to undergo incisionless ultrasound surgery using a...

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Scanning electron microscope image of breast cancer cells

‘AI scientist’ suggests combinations of widely available non-cancer drugs can kill cancer cells

04 Jun 2025

An ‘AI scientist’, working in collaboration with human scientists, has found that combinations of cheap and safe drugs – used to treat conditions...

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Woman Undergoing Mammogram Procedure

Enhanced breast cancer screening in the UK could detect an extra 3,500 cancers per year, trial shows

21 May 2025

Researchers in Cambridge are calling for additional scans to be added to breast screening for women with very dense breasts. This follows a large-...

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Portrait of a young girl with cancer

Potential new treatment to tackle commonest form of childhood cancer

20 May 2025

A combination of two drugs could improve outcomes and reduce the need for toxic chemotherapy for B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (B-ALL), the...

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Jean Abraham and Jackie Van Bochoven

New approach to treating aggressive breast cancers shows significant improvement in survival

13 May 2025

A new treatment approach significantly improves survival rates for patients with aggressive, inherited breast cancers, according to Cambridge...

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Doctor and patient making a mammography

Removing ovaries and fallopian tubes linked to lower risk of early death among certain breast cancer patients

07 May 2025

Women diagnosed with breast cancer who carry particular BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic variants are offered surgery to remove the ovaries and fallopian...

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Bald young man, front view

Throwing a ‘spanner in the works’ of our cells’ machinery could help fight cancer, fatty liver disease… and hair loss

18 Apr 2025

Fifty years since its discovery, scientists have finally worked out how a molecular machine found in mitochondria, the ‘powerhouses’ of our cells...

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Brown lab mouse on blue gloved hand

Mouse study suggests a common diabetes drug may prevent leukaemia

16 Apr 2025

Metformin, a widely used and affordable diabetes drug, could prevent a form of acute myeloid leukaemia in people at high risk of the disease, a study...

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Serena Nik-Zainal at the Early Cancer Institute

Scientists create 'metal detector' to hunt down tumours

10 Apr 2025

Cambridge researchers have created a ‘metal detector’ algorithm that can hunt down vulnerable tumours, in a development that could one day...

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