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Category: Research

Proton beam research project reaches important milestone

A two-year Children’s Cancer Research Fund (CCRF) research project at The University of Manchester has been completed, marking an important milestone in work to improve proton beam therapy for children with cancer. This milestone has been made possible thanks to the generosity of CCRF supporters, whose donations helped fund the two-year proton beam research project […]

£70,000 awarded to pioneer new treatment approach for aggressive childhood cancer

To mark International Clinical Trials Day (20 May), we are proud to announce our latest research grant award – pioneering research that could lay the foundations for a completely new way of treating high‑risk neuroblastoma, one of the most aggressive childhood cancers. This £70,000 research grant, supported by two other charities, Joseph’s Smile and The […]

AI-powered blood test shows promise for children and young people with Ewing sarcoma

Ewing Sarcoma blood test

Thanks to initial funding from the Children’s Cancer Research Fund (CCRF), researchers at the Cancer Research UK National Biomarker Centre have developed a blood test powered by artificial intelligence that could help doctors monitor children and young people with Ewing sarcoma, a type of bone and soft tissue cancer. The team, collaborating with professor of […]

First ACCR Paediatric Cancer Progress Report

The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) has published its first-ever Paediatric Cancer Progress Report. Decades of research and collaboration have transformed the outlook for cancers affecting children. In the United States, the overall 5-year survival rate for paediatric cancers has risen from 63% in the mid-1970s to 87% in 2015–2021. Mortality has declined by […]

Blood-tests for neuroblastoma clinical trials to guide next-generation cancer treatments.

Neuroblastoma research

In 2021, we were delighted to collaborate with Neuroblastoma UK on a research grant of £469,093, awarded to an international team of leading clinician-scientists to explore how blood tests (biomarker testing) could be used in clinical trials to improve outcomes for children with neuroblastoma. Professor Louis Chesler’s research grant was co-funded by Neuroblastoma UK (£454,093) […]

2025 Research Grant Call now open!

Research Grant Call

We are delighted to open a research grant call for 2025. Thanks to the support of our fantastic donors and supporters, we are now able to open a new research grant call, inviting researchers to apply for funding to help make their transformative and innovative ideas in cancer paediatrics a reality. For this grant call, […]

Exploring the impact of Proton Beam Therapy on paediatric cancers

proton beam therapy

At the start of January, Dr Amy Chadwick and Dr Emma Biglin began the second year of a research project funded by the Children’s Cancer Research Fund (aka Friends of Rosie) to explore the potential of proton beam therapy in treating paediatric cancers. Over the first year of this study, they made significant strides in […]

Neuroblastoma progress – outcomes from our research symposium

Friends of Rosie, now known as the Children’s Cancer Research Fund (CCRF), runs an international research symposium in alternate years. In September 2024, over 40 people gathered together in Manchester for the two-day scientific events titled, Theragnostics for neuroblastoma: making molecular radiotherapy work better. Here our Scientific Advisory Board Chair, Dr Mark Gaze, shares a summary […]

Proton Beam Therapy project gets funding for second year

The Children’s Cancer Research Fund is funding a second year of a vital research project investigating the biology of protons used in Proton Beam Therapy (PBT) to treat sarcomas in children. This will bring the grant total for this project to £140,000. Here lead researcher, Dr Amy Chadwick, and Research Associate, Dr Emma Biglin, tell […]

Neuroblastoma symposium this September

neuroblastoma research

As we build up to Childhood Cancer Awareness Month in September, we are busy finalising arrangements for our second international childhood cancer research symposium. Taking place on the 11 and 12 September in Manchester, we are bringing together a focused group of 50 clinicians and scientists to discuss how we can make molecular radiotherapy work […]

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Nancy Dykes

Nancy Dykes

Nancy, 11, was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma when she was just 2 years old. She was treated with Proton Beam Therapy (PBT) in Germany but unfortunately relapsed less than a year later. The family were then sent to Germany for a second round of PBT. Although treatment helped to cure Nancy’s cancer, she has been left with lots of lasting effects which will require ongoing treatment throughout her life. Here Nancy and her mum, Antonia, share their story in the hope it will help others, raise awareness, and raise more money for children’s cancer research.

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Prof John Hickman

Prof John Hickman

Why I am a Trustee of CCRF
 
I am a relative of the Larkin family and knew Rosie Larkin ( Friends of Rosie, now CCRF) when she had and then died of neuroblastoma, aged six. At that time, I was a scientist and professor at Manchester University, actively working on the problem of why some cancers do not die despite intensive and toxic therapies.  Seeing Rosie during her unsuccessful therapy and then attending her funeral, besides being emotional, drove me to double down on my own research as well as to support the Charity as best I could as a cancer researcher. I spent over a decade as the Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of the CCRF, when the Board moulded policies to ensure that funds raised for research into childhood cancers were distributed only to clinicians and researchers who had the brightest ideas that could impact of cancer medicine for children.
 
My role on the Board
 
As a Trustee,  I hope that my many decades of experience in cancer research and medicine can help the CCRF determine where best the funds that are raised can be invested in cutting edge research and medicine. I am also keen that the CCRF brings together UK and international experts in science and cancer medicine to brainstorm on how best to advance the treatment of childhood cancers.
 
My Background
 
I was a Professor of Pharmacology at Manchester University, working on drug resistance in cancer. I then moved to Paris, where I still live, to head cancer drug discovery at a French pharmaceutical company (Servier). I then headed an EU consortium for six years that brought together researchers from the pharmaceutical industry, universities and biotechnology companies, from all over Europe and the UK, to improve cancer drug discovery. I continue to be active in cancer health policy, publishing in the medical literature.
Katrina

Katrina London

Why I am a Trustee of CCRF

I have spent my professional career representing individuals and families affected by the devastating asbestos-related cancer, mesothelioma, which has no cure and for which there are only a limited number of palliative treatments available on the NHS.

I joined CCRF because I wanted to bring my understanding of the need to raise awareness of less well known cancers and passion for the need to secure improved funding for research to children facing a cancer diagnosis.

My role on the Board

I am responsible for oversight of our collaboration agreements with other charities to co-fund research into cures and treatments for childhood cancers. I also manage our challenge events and help with community fundraising. 

My Background

I am a Senior Associate at Irwin Mitchell LLP and specialise in Asbestos Disease Litigation, acting on behalf of victims of asbestos related diseases and their families.  Over the years, I have undertaken a number of fundraising challenges to raise money for cancer research, including a 1000 mile cycle ride from Glasgow to Southampton.   

Carla

Carla Nuttall

Why I’m a Trustee of CCRF
 
I became a trustee of the Children’s Cancer Research Fund because I believe every child deserves the chance to grow up healthy and with everything to look forward to in life. Like many people, I’ve seen the impact cancer can have on families and I wanted to do something that could make a real difference. This started through my work as an ambassador for Cyclists Fighting Cancer, which supported young people and their families in finding strength, confidence, and joy through movement.
 
That experience shaped my understanding of the challenges families face and the importance of community-led support – but crucially, the clear need for that to go hand-in-hand with targeted research and long-term solutions.
 
This is why I’m so passionate about the work CCRF does and proud to contribute to a cause that gives children and their families, the greatest chance of living a life without limits.
 
My Role on the Board
 
I support CCRF’s mission by bringing my experience in brand, marketing, and communications to the board. My focus is on helping CCRF tell its story in a way that resonates with people – whether that’s families, researchers, donors, or the wider public. I work alongside an incredible team to strengthen CCRF’s voice, build trust, and grow awareness so that more children and families can benefit from the breakthroughs we’re helping to fund.
 
My Background
 
I’m the Executive Director of Corporate Affairs and Marketing for The Growth Company, a social enterprise dedicated to helping people, businesses, and places to thrive through its market-leading insight, employment, skills and business support.
My passion is to help the organisations I work with to communicate with clarity, purpose, and integrity. That’s why I’ve spent my career in strategic communications supporting organisations that want to make a positive difference – CCRF could not fit my sense of purpose any better.