ARC to Build new Models for Human Cancer

Dr Hadwen Trust Patron and star of Downton Abbey Peter Egan launched The Animal Replacement Centre of Excellence (The ARC) in October, a joint venture between the Blizard Institute, Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) and the Dr Hadwen Trust (DHT), the UK’s leading non-animal medical research charity dedicated to the fight against skin, breast and prostate cancer.

Research at The ARC, based at the Blizard Institute, will be led by Professor Mike Philpott and supported by Dr Adrian Biddle, with aims to accelerate the development of human models for human disease and help reduce the number of animals currently used in cancer research. Their work will be supported by a DHT investment of £1,000,000 made possible by a generous legacy from Alan and Kathie Stross, who were committed supporters of the DHT.

Development of the most robust and applicable non-animal research methods for human cancer, addresses the limitations of both poorly performing cell based approaches and animal models. The over-dependence on mouse models in particular has slowed progress in cancer research and can provide misleading data. There is therefore a pressing need for human focused non-animal technologies that have demonstrable relevance to human cancer, said the DHT.

Dr Brett Cochrane, Science Director at the Dr Hadwen Trust said: “The Blizard Institute and The ARC perfectly embody the innovation, collaboration and interdisciplinary research excellence required to successfully develop, validate and apply human-based models of disease. This is animal-replacement science at its finest.”

Professor Mike Philpott, Director of the Animal Replacement Centre of Excellence and Professor of Cutaneous Biology at QMUL said: “The Blizard Institute has an international reputation for research and teaching excellence and has pioneered the development of three-dimensional models to study human disease, particularly important when helping us to understand human skin biology and cancer. We would like to express our thanks to the DHT for their commitment and generous support enabling us to advance human models for human disease.”