Dundee a capital of cancer research

TODAY'S unprecedented honour accorded to Professor David Lane by the

Curie Institute in Paris and the announcement of #5m in grants from the

Cancer Research Campaign to fund his research teams is proof positive of

Dundee's emergence as a cancer research centre of international

standing.

In a stunning reversal of the brain drain, hundreds of young

post-doctoral scientists from around the world are clamouring to work on

research teams led by Dundee's internationally renowned professors.

Scarcely a week goes by without an announcement of new research

funding for, and significant achievements by, the research teams based

at Dundee University's biochemistry department and its medical school at

Ninewells Hospital.

The air of excitement and enthusiasm among the largely youthful group

of scientists at the sharp end of research into cancer and a range of

other life-threatening diseases is almost palpable.

Dundee has attained a critical mass in cancer research and progress

seems unstoppable. Five years ago, important cancer research teams led

by Professor Lane and Professor David Glover, relocated to Dundee from

England. They were attracted by the standard of research already being

conducted at the university's biochemistry department under Professor

Philip Cohen.

Two years ago, Professor Roland Wolf relocated his Imperial Cancer

Research Fund laboratories to Dundee where his Biomedical Research

Centre now employs 70 scientists at Ninewells Hospital. Most recently,

Professor Peter Hall was lured north from St Thomas's Hospital in

London.

Earlier this year, Professor Cohen's team successfully persuaded the

Wellcome Foundation to provide a #22m grant to the university to build a

new Biomedical Sciences Institute.

About 240 scientists will be recruited to work at the new centre and

applications are flooding in.

Last week, plans were unveiled for a #2m clinical oncology centre at

Ninewells Hospital to apply laboratory research at a clinical level.

When the new biomedical institute is opened in 1997, Dundee will

employ 1500 people in what is termed the biomedical and life sciences.

It is a far cry from the days, in 1971, when the biochemistry

department in Dundee employed just 15 scientists.

A key element in the success of Dundee in developing as Britain's

fourth biomedical centre after Oxford, Cambridge and Edinburgh has been

interdisciplinary co-operation between pure science and medicine to

produce world-class excellence.

Robert Seaton, secretary of the university, has witnessed the rise of

biomedical sciences to account for more than half of Dundee University's

#20m annual research budget.

He said: ''Professor Peter Garland deserves credit for re-establishing

biochemistry in Dundee by head-hunting about a dozen bright young

scientists in the late sixties and early seventies. Among them was

Philip Cohen who has gained recognition as one of the world's leading

scientists.''

''The emphasis is now moving away from pure science to the application

of that pure science to cracking problems like cancer. Our departments

of anatomy and physiology, pathology and pharmacology are all working in

related fields.''

Professor Lane finds the pioneering spirit in Dundee encouraging and

is heartened by the level of cross-disciplinary collaboration. He said:

''It is useful for people to come to problems from different angles. We

also get a lot of benefit from the research which is undertaken by

Philip Cohen. It means that we can share not just equipment but also

different techniques. The number of groups that we have working here

make so many different techniques available; that is one of Dundee's key

strengths.

''There is a tremendous atmosphere here. It is a real pioneering

spirit. We are showing Oxford and Cambridge that we can do it by

ourselves.''

Last night Professor Cohen, hotly tipped as a future Nobel laureate,

revealed that he has received more than 300 applications for the 30 top

posts at the new Biomedical Institute. ''We offered jobs to eight

outstanding candidates and I am pleased to say that seven have agreed to

come to Dundee.

''These are among the very best of British scientists working in North

America.''