We’re investing in new research projects to increase early diagnosis of bowel cancer

We’re thrilled to announce that we’re awarding pilot grants worth a total of £122,000 to five new research projects for 2024, with a focus on early diagnosis of bowel cancer.

The five pilot research projects will investigate different areas that have the potential to improve early diagnosis – from researching new ways to diagnose inherited conditions that increase the risk of bowel cancer to looking at improving responses to screening. The projects, which run up to 18 months, play a critical role in our strategic goal of getting the right treatment and care for every patient.

Since 2017 we’ve invested over £1,900,000 in research. Our pilot grant programme opens the door to future research opportunities by allowing researchers to develop and investigate innovative research ideas, allowing them to generate high quality data to support future larger grant applications. It also helps researchers who are early in their career to demonstrate results from managing their first grant, which opens up opportunities for them. Ultimately this leads to important bowel cancer research taking place.

Every 15 minutes someone in the UK is diagnosed with bowel cancer, and it’s the second biggest cancer killer, but it doesn’t have to be this way. The disease is treatable if diagnosed early, but currently fewer than 40% of people are diagnosed at an early stage (stage 1 and 2) when treatment has the best chance of working and the chances of survival are at its highest.

The five funded projects are:

• Professor Andrew Beggs at the University of Birmingham is testing a new, quicker, and cheaper way to diagnose inherited conditions which can increase the risk of bowel cancer, such as Lynch syndrome
• Dr Anna Maria Ochocka-Fox at the University of Edinburgh is building a new resource tool that can be used to support research into better treatments for patients with the inherited condition, familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP). People with FAP have a very high chance of developing bowel cancer
• Professor Mark Lawler at Queen’s University Belfast is testing whether adding a deadline to the bowel screening invitation letter can increase how many people complete their screening test
• Professor Katie Robb at the University of Glasgow is investigating attitudes to surveillance colonoscopies from people who have already had polyps removed. People who have had polyps removed may have a higher risk of developing more in the future, and so are invited back for a surveillance colonoscopy. Professor Rob’s team will investigate how people feel about having another colonoscopy and if there are barriers to attending these
• Dr Nagore De Leon at the University of Oxford is searching for new drugs to stop precancerous polyps from progressing into bowel cancer, particularly in people who have inherited conditions that can cause the growth of many bowel polyps
  
  

Dr Lisa Wilde, Director of Research and External Affairs at Bowel Cancer UK says: “We’re delighted to be able to fund these excellent new research projects, which have the potential to accelerate a stage shift towards earlier diagnosis of bowel cancer. We’ll follow their progress with great interest.

“In 2024 we are continuing to work relentlessly towards our vision of a future where nobody dies of bowel cancer. An important part of this is ensuring more people are diagnosed at the earliest stages when the disease is easier to treat, and investing into vital bowel cancer research is one of the best ways to do this.”

• Find out more about our research
• Read our five-year strategy that aims to ensure more people are diagnosed at the earliest stages when the disease is easier to treat
• We want to see a future where nobody dies of bowel cancer. It's an ambitious goal, and one we're determined to achieve. Join us