At ICR Discovery Club event, members thanked CRIS Cancer Foundation for the donation of £1.4 million made to support immunotherapy research at the ICR.
A cheque for £1.4 million was presented by the founders of the CRIS Cancer Foundation, Lola Manterola and Diego Megia, to help fund immunotherapy research at the ICR.
New team leader Dr Astero Klampatsa received the cheque on behalf of the ICR. Her research is working to understand tumour immune responses, which will be funded by the donation from CRIS.
We have already made exciting progress in developing immunotherapy treatments for patients with cancer, and this donation from CRIS will help us to continue taking significant strides forward, by setting up a new team in the ICR’s Division of Cancer Therapeutics led by Dr Klampatsa.
Dr Klampatsa’s Thoracic Oncology Immunotherapy Team will focus on understanding malignant mesothelioma, a highly lethal cancer that develops in the protective lining of the lungs and chest cavity which is mainly caused by exposure to asbestos.
The immune system fails to produce enough of a type of immune cell called T cells in response to this cancer, and her research aims to understand what underpins this poor response.
She will also look at identifying signals which indicate that the cancer is likely to respond to immunotherapies, and develop new therapies in the form of CAR T cells – these are produced by engineering a patients’ T cells to attack specific molecules on the surface of their tumours.
“CRIS is really proud to support oncology projects at the ICR and helping to move forward on the fight against cancer”.
ABOUT DISCOVERY CLUB
The Discovery Club is our high-level giving club, whose members help us drive forward our scientific strategy through philanthropic investment in key organisational priorities.
Discovery Club members are a special group of visionary supporters who help us to make the discoveries that defeat cancer by making an annual investment in our work.
Through a regular series of exclusive events, members get personal access to some of the leading ICR scientists and clinicians and hear about their work, and the ways that their support is making a difference