Pancreatology

The Department of Molecular and Clinical Cancer Medicine is the centre for large European pancreas studies aimed at examining the benefit of chemotherapy and chemoradiotherapy in the treatment of patients who have undergone surgery to remove pancreas cancer tissue. The Pancreatology program is offered by University of Liverpool.

Pancreatology is one of Liverpool’s recognised strengths with scientific expertise in Pancreatic cancer and pancreatitis and strong clinical and science leadership.

Key Features

• The University has invested over £20million in cancer research which has been used for the creation of several new posts in the Department, and in the establishment of the University of Liverpool Cancer Research Centre (ULCRC) building.
• The research themes of thePancreatology program at University of Liverpool include:

• Clinical trials aimed at determining the overall benefits of current treatments and evaluating the benefits of newly emerging treatments for pancreatic cancer.
• Development and Co-ordination of the world's largest collection of families with Hereditary Pancreatitis and Familial Pancreas Cancer.
• Identification of novel drug targets or diagnostic markers for pancreatic cancer. In an attempt to identify suitable drug targets or diagnostic markers for pancreatic adenocarcinoma, we have begun a systematic comparison of protein expression profiles from highly purified specimens of pancreatic adenocarcinoma and corresponding normal tissue.
• Increasing the efficacy of currently used chemotherapeutic drugs for treating pancreatic cancer. Given the chemo-resistant nature of pancreatic cancer, we are investigating whether combining chemotherapy with other forms of therapy will more potently kill pancreatic cancer cells.

Research interests:

• Clinical studies conducted with the intent to advance therapies to the clinic or develop principles for application of therapeutics to human disease

• Non-human or non-clinical studies conducted with the intent to advance therapies to the clinic or develop principles for application of therapeutics to human disease

• Investigations in humans which define the biology of disease and provide the scientific base for the development of new or improved therapies for human disease

• Any clinical trial of a therapy that was initiated based on the above

• The biology-chemistry “bridge”.