DCU Awarded third SFI Research Cluster in Cancer Research
26 June 2009

“New Cluster to position Ireland as a key international player in oncology arena” - Lenihan

On Thursday 25 June 2009, Conor Lenihan T.D., Minister for Science, Technology & Innovation, announced a €5.6 million funding from Government, through Science Foundation Ireland, for the establishment of a new Strategic Research Cluster (SRC). Under the leadership of well known Consultant Medical Oncologist, Professor John Crown, with Dublin City University (DCU) as lead academic institution, the SRC in Molecular Therapeutics for Cancer will assemble and build a fully-integrated national translational cancer drug discovery and development programme that will significantly benefit cancer patients in Ireland. This brings to three the number of SFI Strategic Research Clusters awarded to DCU in 2009 out of six awards nationally.

Professor Crown is the holder the Thomas Baldwin Chair in Translational Cancer at DCU and is based in the National Institute for Cellular Biotechnology.  This cluster was developed in close collaboration with a number of leading DCU scientists in particular Prof. Martin Clynes, Dr. Robert O’Connor and Dr. Norma O’Donovan.

Making the announcement pf the Cancer Cluster award, Minister Lenihan, said “This SRC has genuine potential to make Ireland a leading centre for cancer drug discovery and development. Today marks the latest declaration from Government that it believes in science, and greatly values the top class collaborative research being conducted in this country”.

The Minister added “I very much look forward to the contributions and findings that will emerge from the efforts of Prof. Crown and his team over the five-year period of this funding award. There is real confidence that this SRC will help to ultimately position Ireland as a key international player in the oncology research arena”. 

Addressing the event, Professor Crown said “We have witnessed fundamental change and enormous progress in the area of cancer drug treatment in recent years. The very significant funding provided by Government through Science Foundation Ireland, will foster greater and more focused collaboration between existing high quality cancer research units in this country.  We would like to acknowledge the support of our industrial partners in this process and believe that the award will encourage further investment in biomedical research in Ireland.”

Professor Crown’s team also comprises of collaborators in St. Vincent’s University Hospital/University College Dublin, Royal College of Surgeons, Trinity College Dublin/St. James’s Hospital and the Irish Cooperative Oncology Research Group. The SRC’s Industry Partners are GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, Merck Sharpe & Dohme, Novartis, Roche, Amgen, Erigal, Caliper Life Science, AntiCancer Inc.

Speaking at the announcement, Director General of SFI, Professor Frank Gannon, said “This SRC is a deliberate step to bring together the clinical and pharmaceutical worlds through the definition of research that is mutually important.  The Irish Government, through the Health Research Board, as well as SFI, is reinforcing efforts in this area of translational research. In a research context, the exchange and sharing of knowledge in a cluster format provides the best possible chances of success. Collaborative activity remains a key priority of SFI’s overall strategy as it expands its research programmes, while maintaining an acute awareness of enterprise needs and commercial potential.

Professor Gannon added that “the detailed and rigorous process of assessment and review by international scientific experts and state agencies proves beyond doubt that this SRC really is of the very highest quality”. 

SFI’s SRC programme aims to link scientists and engineers in partnerships across academia and industry to address crucial research questions, foster the development of new and existing Irish-based technology companies, and to grow partnerships with industry that will enhance the competitiveness of Ireland’s economy.