Following a fire which caused significant damage to the Paterson cancer research facility in 2017, building work on the new Paterson building at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester has been completed.
The building is part of the Manchester Cancer Research Centre – ‘a highly successful partnership between three powerhouses of innovation’ – The Christie, Cancer Research UK, and The University of Manchester – and will reportedly be one of the world’s top cancer research centres. Integrated Health Projects (IHP), the joint venture between VINCI Building and Sir Robert McAlpine, and its supply chain partners, BDP, Arup, and Imtech, says the ‘partners’ have ‘realised a fantastic, state-of-the-art facility that will lead world-class transformational cancer research’.
VINCI Building said: “The building is set to become home to Europe’s largest concentration of scientists, doctors, and nurses. Some 300 scientists and 400 clinicians and operational staff, practicing ‘team science’, will deliver clinical trials covering the full extent of the patient pathway – from prevention and novel treatments to living with and beyond cancer.”
At over 25,000 m2 and 10 storeys high, the building is over twice the size of the previous facility, allowing experts to deliver discovery research and translate their findings into innovative clinical trials ‘at scale’. To be occupied by all three of the partners, it will be home to the Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute, and several other teams from The University of Manchester’s Division of Cancer Sciences., as well as Manchester’s scientific headquarters for discovery science within the international Alliance for Early Cancer Detection. A central component will be the new Cancer Research UK Cancer Biomarker Centre, which will focus on biomarkers to aid in early cancer detection and diagnosis, and enable ‘personalised management’ of a patient’s cancer.
Roger Spencer, CEO at The Christie, said: “The Christie has been at the forefront of cancer research for over 120 years. Standard treatments first trialled here have improved the outcomes for millions of cancer patients worldwide. This new centre allows us to build on this legacy, so it’s exciting to see the vision become a reality. We want to give every patient who walks through our doors the best possible treatment and care. Having so many different specialists collaborating under one roof will help us achieve our ambition to make the facility one of the world’s top five cancer research centres.”
