Our aim is to increase the cure rates for all blood cancers in children to 100%, while also reducing the short- and long-term side effects associated with current treatments. Consequently, our research has a strong translational focus: to identify new leukaemia-specific targets, develop novel targeted drugs, and move these drugs as quickly as possible from bench to bedside.
We investigate multiple aspects of leukaemia biology and treatment, interrogating the mechanisms that contribute to leukaemia initiation, progression, relapse and drug resistance. We use multiple, diverse pre-clinical models of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) to test promising drugs. In the clinic we monitor at the molecular level the treatment responses of children with ALL, and these results are used to guide further treatment decisions.