A new £28.5m cancer research centre opens in Withington today.
The University of Manchester building will be home to researchers from the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, a partnership between Cancer Research UK, The University of Manchester and The Christie NHS Foundation Trust.
Director of the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, Professor Nic Jones, said: ”I’ve always been extremely proud to work in Manchester which has such a strong legacy in cancer research. The new centre will attract world class scientists and help to save thousands of lives both here and around the world.”
The state-of-the-art facility, located opposite The Christie and the Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute, is set to pull in more world-class scientists to the city, boosting research and helping to get improved treatments to patients faster.
Cancer remains one of the major healthcare challenges worldwide, in the UK and in the North West. In Greater Manchester alone, about 13,200 people are diagnosed with the disease every year.
The three Manchester Cancer Research Centre partners have been working closely together since 2006 and jointly funded the construction of the new facility which will provide greater opportunities to work collaboratively under the same roof.
The flagship building provides more than six thousand square metres for expansion of research activity and has been designed to maximize the sharing of ideas and collaborations between scientists and clinicians.
Cancer experts will be able to use a comprehensive array of new technologies and equipment within the new infrastructure. The building houses meeting rooms, laboratories, a lecture theatre and a café area for the public. It is set to provide space for around 250 staff.
The design also includes a rainwater harvesting system to collect rain runoff from roof areas, and to supply recycled water to the building.
An open day will be held in the new building on Saturday June 20. Members of the public are welcome to attend between 10am and 4pm.
