Overview of the Cancer Trials Centre
The Cancer Research UK and University College London (UCL) Cancer Trials Centre is part of the UCL Cancer Institute. It is a UKCRN and NCRI-accredited Cancer Trials Unit responsible for the design, development and conduct of trials of novel therapies, and new approaches to the treatment of patients with cancer. As a national Clinical Trials Unit it works with NCRI Clinical Studies Group and other national research development bodies conducting multi-centre clinical trials. Several trials are performed in collaboration with European and North American research groups, and their national trials centres, providing patients wide access to clinical trials.
As a part of the UCL Cancer Institute, it has strong links with translational medicine. Within UCL Partners, a collaboration of UCL and five associated hospitals in north and central London there are wide-ranging opportunities for studies of novel therapies and experimental clinical research. UCL Hospitals hosts one of the five comprehensive Biomedical Centres in the UK and a Cancer Research UK supported Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre (ECMC). This is linked to the Wellcome Trust-funded Clinical Research Facility and provides an opportunity for local researchers to develop and conduct early phase trials in collaboration with the Cancer Trials Centre.
The Cancer Trials Centre has developed an expertise in lung, hepato-biliary, ano-rectal, head and neck and gynaecological cancers, and in lymphomas and haematological malignancies. It has an international reputation for its pioneering work in trials of treatment of early breast cancers with landmark studies on the role of radiotherapy, surgery and hormone therapy.
In addition to conducting a large number of wide-ranging phase III trials the Centre has a growing portfolio of early 'feasibility' studies and phase I trials. The Centre's trial portfolio has approximately 35 active trials and a large number in long-term follow up. Over the last four years the centre has grown considerably to accommodate a large expansion in trial workload, and the regulatory procedures that are now required to conduct clinical trials in the UK.
The centre has over 60 staff with wide-ranging expertise. These include statisticians, senior trials research staff, a regulatory affairs team, trial co-ordinators, data managers, database and IT staff, and administrative and clerical personnel. Most studies involve drug intervention with Investigational Medicinal Products (IMPs) but there are also trials with radiotherapy, and cancer screening studies.
Education and training are important components of our work, not only to develop skills of our own staff but to contribute to teaching at UCL, and nationally through the NCRN and UKCRN.
