Centres and strategic collaborations
Our multidisciplinary centres of excellence and strategic collaborations bring a critical mass of leading researchers together from across the ICR, The Royal Marsden and partner institutions to tackle some of the biggest challenges in cancer research and treatment. By sharing expertise, technology and resources, we aim to deliver world class research that rapidly benefits patients.
Biomedical Research Centre
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) at The Royal Marsden and the ICR is the only BRC to specifically focus on cancer. Its aim is to drive pioneering, translational and clinical research.
Breast Cancer Now Toby Robins Research Centre
The Breast Cancer Now Research Centre receives most of its funding from its parent charity Breast Cancer Now, and was opened in 1999 by Breast Cancer Now's Patron, HRH The Prince of Wales.
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Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery
The Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery is the largest academic cancer drug discovery and development group worldwide, covering every aspect of new drug discovery and development.
Centre for Cancer Imaging
The new Centre for Cancer Imaging will use cutting-edge imaging techniques to understand cancer’s development and response to treatment – as a means of accelerating the discovery of new therapies.
Centre for Evolution and Cancer
The Centre for Evolution and Cancer is applying Charles Darwin’s principle of natural selection within ecosystems to our understanding of why we develop cancer and why it is so difficult to treat.
Centre for Genome Stability
The Centre for Genome Stability is a unique multidisciplinary programme bringing together experts from across the ICR and The Royal Marsden who work on DNA-damage response and genome instability research with clinical experts in the treatment of cancer
Centre for Global Oncology
Our aim is to promote cancer research, training, fundraising and infrastructure building in low and middle income countries.-being-attacked-by-two-cytotoxic-t-cells-(red)-547x410.tmb-ctadt.png?Culture=en&sfvrsn=8f59440b_2)
Centre for Immunotherapy of Cancer
This virtual centre aims to increase communication between clinicians and scientists with an interest in translational immunotherapy. It brings together staff and students from the ICR and our partner hospital, The Royal Marsden.
Centre for Molecular Pathology
This centre is a collaborative initiative between The Royal Marsden the ICR that aims to identify the molecular mechanisms that drive cancers and to target them with a new generation of treatments.
Centre for Protein Degradation
The Centre for Protein Degradation is a virtual centre coordinating all aspects of molecularly driven protein degradation, from concept to clinic, both within and beyond the ICR.
Centre for Target Validation
The Centre for Target Validation (CTV) is a multidisciplinary and collaborative research centre that streamlines the connection between cancer science and drug discovery at the ICR.
Clinical Trials and Statistics Unit
The ICR Clinical Trials and Statistics Unit (ICR-CTSU) leads the design, conduct and analysis of phase II and III national and international cancer clinical trials. Our findings directly influence clinical practice within the NHS and worldwide.
Drug Development Unit
The Drug Development Unit was opened in February 2005 as a joint unit of the ICR and The Royal Marsden. In 2011, at the Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre Network quinquennial review, the unit was given a rating of ‘outstanding’ for past work and future plans.
Joint Department of Physics
The Joint Department of Physics conducts and translates research and development of medical physics into clinical practice. It is a collaboration of academic and clinical staff from the ICR and The Royal Marsden.
Joint Integrated Pathology Unit
Our pioneering research into diagnostics combines the power of digital pathology and artificial intelligence.
Joint Sarcoma Research Centre
Our virtual research centre, a collaboration between The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, has been driving pioneering research for innovative treatments for sarcomas since our launch in January 2019.
Paediatric Oncology Experimental Medicine
Our Centre's goal is to develop novel treatments and diagnostic tests, and deliver changes in clinical practice, for children with cancer. We aim to do this through innovative clinical trials that are driven by our scientific understanding of children’s cancer mechanism.
Radiation Research Centre of Excellence
The Centre brings together world-leading experts in radiotherapy, immunotherapy, cancer biology and targeted drug treatment to collaborate on new forms of combination treatment.Our strategic collaborations
The Cancer Research UK Convergence Science Centre
The ICR and Imperial College London are working together to open up new frontiers in cancer research.
The Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Research Unit (CEPRU)
CEPRU is a joint initiative between The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and Imperial College London.
The London Cancer Hub
The London Cancer Hub is a collaboration between the ICR and the London Borough of Sutton, with the support of The Royal Marsden and the Greater London Authority. It aims to create more than 13,000 jobs and will will enhance the discovery of new cancer treatments.
CRUK Children’s Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence
A joint initiative led by the ICR and the University of Cambridge, this centre brings together world experts in paediatric brain tumour research and drug discovery.
Children’s Brain Tumour Centre
The Generations Study
The Generations Study is a longitudinal cohort study established in 2004 and involving 110,000 adult women living across the UK. The cohort collects extensive high-quality data to study the continuum of breast cancer, from its causes to outcomes. Through this research we are learning how to prevent breast cancer, detect it early and improve quality of life and survival after diagnosis.