Breakthrough Cancer Research

Six Summer Scholars. Six research projects. One inspiring summer of research.

Earlier this month, we brought together our 2026 Breakthrough Cancer Research Summer Scholars to celebrate the completion of their summer research projects and hear what they learned along the way.

Each scholar had the opportunity to present their research to our Public and Patient Involvement (PPI) Panel, with a focus on making their work accessible and meaningful to people without a scientific background. Great cancer research isn’t just about what happens in the lab. It’s also about being able to communicate why that research matters to the people whose lives it hopes to change.

Our PPI partners play a central role in the work we fund, and their involvement in the Summer Scholars programme gives emerging researchers an invaluable opportunity to learn directly from people with lived experience of cancer.

Congratulations to
🩵 Caoimhe Quinn - Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
🩵 Flavia Melati Chiappara - DCU
🩵 Sarah Vickers - TU Dublin / OT Baile Átha Cliath
🩵 Iftikhaar Haque - University College Cork
🩵 Holly Fahy - Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
🩵 Elena Brophy - University College Cork

on your hard work, curiosity and commitment throughout the summer. It has been a pleasure to support you as you take these important steps in your research careers.

A special congratulations to Iftikhaar Haque, who was selected by our PPI Panel as the winner of the Best Lay Presentation Award.

And to our wonderful PPI Panel members, thank you for sharing your time, expertise and perspectives, and for helping shape the next generation of cancer researchers.

Here’s to the future of cancer research in Ireland!

🩵 Help make vital cancer research possible. Become a monthly donor through the link below and support research into new, better, kinder, smarter, and more effective treatments and diagnostics for people with cancer.
🔬 https://breakthroughcancerresearch.ie/sponsor/

Today is World Cancer Research Day, and we’re sharing how your support is helping researchers explore more personalised treatment for people with advanced breast cancer. 🩵

Developed through Dr. Emer Lynch’s Clinical Research Fellowship, funded by Breakthrough Cancer Research, and supervised by Prof Roisin Connolly Director of Cancer Research at University College Cork , the MELODY trial will use a blood test called a “liquid biopsy” to look for genetic changes in cancer.

These clues could help doctors understand why a treatment is or isn’t working and which treatments might be suitable next.

People with lived experience have helped shape the trial too. Aislinn Higgins, a member of its Public and Patient Involvement Panel, explains:

“Being involved in the MELODY Trial is so important to me. It is important to me that patients have a voice like this and that information is clear and understandable.”

Recruitment opens in early October 2026. The clinical trial aims to involve 50 women with advanced breast cancer from Cork and Kerry over two years at the CUH/UCC Cancer Centre, Cork University Hospital.

To learn more about eligibility, contact [email protected] or speak with your medical oncologist at CUH.

Behind this clinical trial are researchers, clinicians, people sharing their lived experience and supporters like you. Thank you for helping make it possible.

👉 Swipe to learn more and read the full story here: https://breakthroughcancerresearch.ie/news/melody-trial-breast-cancer/

🩵 Our National Flag Day Collections are underway! 🩵

Around World Cancer Research Day every September, our incredible volunteers take to towns, cities and communities across Ireland to collect in support of Breakthrough Cancer Research.

Every donation helps fund vital cancer research across Ireland, supporting more than 200 researchers working towards new, better, kinder, smarter and more effective ways to prevent, detect and treat cancer.

🌍 From busy streets to local shopping centres, these collections are powered by the generosity of communities across the country and by the volunteers who give their time to make them possible.

🙌 A huge thank you to everyone collecting on our behalf, and to every person who stops to donate, say hello or show their support. Every contribution helps of cancer through research.

📅 Keep an eye out for our collectors throughout September. Your support can help make the next breakthrough possible.

Today is World Gynecologic Oncology Day 🩵

Across Ireland, researchers are working to better understand gynaecological cancers, detect them earlier and develop new and more effective ways to treat them.

Today, we’d like to take a moment to appreciate the work they are doing:

🔬 Dr. Sharon O’Toole is identifying biomarkers that could help diagnose ovarian cancer earlier and who might respond to treatment.

🧬 Dr. Neil Conlon is developing more precise treatments for breast and gynaecological cancers, with the aim of improving outcomes while reducing the impact on healthy cells.

🔬 Ellen Treacy is investigating why ovarian cancer can become resistant to chemotherapy and whether targeting specific proteins could help treatments work better.

🧪 Dr. Marion Butler is investigating drug resistance in ovarian cancer and searching for new treatment options when chemotherapy stops working.

🎯 Luna Stockmann is testing targeted drug combinations that could help overcome treatment resistance in ovarian cancer.

🧬 Dr. Caroline Marion is developing natural killer cell therapies designed to strengthen the immune system’s ability to target ovarian cancer cells.

🔬 Mark McInerney is engineering CAR-T cells to help them better detect and reach solid tumours, including ovarian cancer.

Swipe through to learn more about their research 👉

Your support helps fund research into new, better, kinder, smarter and more effective treatments and diagnostics for people with cancer.

🩵 Help us by supporting cancer research here: https://breakthroughcancerresearch.ie/donate-now/

Trinity College Dublin | DCU | Maynooth University | University of Galway

🔬 We are proud to jointly fund two new cancer research projects through the HRCI–HRB Joint Funding Scheme.

Working with the Health Research Board, we’re supporting researchers exploring new and better ways to understand, detect and treat cancer.

Our two projects are part of a wider €3.1 million investment across 12 innovative health research projects, supported by eight health research charities through the HRCI–HRB Joint Funding Scheme.

For us, this latest round will support two very different areas of cancer research:

🫁 Dr. Martin Barr at Trinity College Dublin will investigate a newly recognised form of cell death called ferroptosis in lung adenocarcinoma.

His team will explore whether a group of ferroptosis-related genes could help predict outcomes for people with lung cancer and investigate whether drugs that trigger ferroptosis could slow tumour growth, including in cancers that have become resistant to existing treatments.

💙 Prof. Patrick Redmond and the PRiCAN team at Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland University of Medicine and Health Sciences will lead YO-FIT, a three-year study looking at a simpler route to investigating bowel symptoms in younger adults.

Adults aged 18–49 with bowel symptoms will be able to request a home FIT test online, by telephone or through their GP practice without first needing a GP appointment. The research will examine whether this approach is practical, acceptable, accessible and safe, with the aim of supporting more timely investigation of symptoms.

Congratulations to Martin, Patrick and their research teams. 👏

Through partnerships like the HRCI–HRB Joint Funding Scheme, we can continue supporting research into new, better, smarter, kinder and more effective ways to prevent, detect and treat cancer.