That Cancer Conversation

Our DNA is made up of 3000 million letters of code. They make up genes within our DNA and are responsible for how cells in our body grow and multiply. But what happens when something in that code goes wrong? Welcome to another episode of That Cancer Conversation, a podcast from Cancer Research UK that brings together the science and the stories behind cancer.  In this episode, Sophie will be looking at the human genome and explore how changes in our DNA can increase our risk of getting cancer. Prof Mike Stratton, former director of the Wellcome Sanger Institute and a pioneer in cancer genetics, helps unpack this question and tells us how he and his team persevered to find the second BRCA gene (BRCA2) and its mutation. It’s been 30 years since the discovery of the first BRCA gene, BRCA1. Sophie sits down with Maria, her sister, Chrissy, and their mother, all who were tested positive for the BRCA2 gene mutation. They discuss their cancer stories and how the life-changing discovery of the BRCA genes has affected them as a family.  Read more cancer stories on Cancer NewsYou can donate to Cancer Research UK here

In the UK 4 in 10 cancer cases are preventable. But what can the government do to stop those 4 out of every 10 cancers before they even start?Welcome to the fourth episode of our mini-series, That Cancer Conversation Longer, better lives. In this episode, Sophie sits with Alizee Froguel who works on prevention policy here at Cancer Research UK. They discuss what’s causing most of these preventable cancers, the announcement of the general election and what's next for achieving a smokefree UK. Read more about Longer, better livesFor more cancer stories, visit Cancer News

Welcome back to another episode of That Cancer Conversation! Here at Cancer Research UK, we’re grateful to benefit from the support of more than 25,000 incredible volunteers, who donate their time to help us beat cancer.  So, in the lead up to Volunteers’ Week on the 3rd of June, we want to say a huge thank you to our brilliant community of volunteers, whose support makes our life-saving research possible. To celebrate their stories, we’re diving into the world of volunteering across 2 special episodes. First up, we’re chatting to Penny, who's been volunteering with us for over 10 years, both as a campaign’s ambassador and as a member of the Children & Young People Insights Panel. After losing family members to cancer, Penny started volunteering in 2010 when she was 21, and hasn’t looked back since. If you're feeling inspired by Penny's story, head to our website to find out how you can get involved volunteering for Cancer Research UK.

You can’t beat cancer without scientists. Without research the progress we've made in beating cancer wouldn’t be where it is today. But that progress is at risk of stalling.To keep up and to plug the funding gap, we would need to find an additional £1 billion pounds over the next decade.  In this episode, Sophie sits down with Owen Jackson, head of policy at Cancer Research UK to understand what challenges scientists in the UK are currently facing and what the UK Government needs to do to help.  To join us in telling party leaders to back our calls for longer, better lives, you can sign our open letter.   Read our manifestoFor more cancer stories, visit Cancer News   

Welcome to another episode of That Cancer Conversation!While bowel cancer is relatively rare for people in their 30s and 40s to get bowel cancer, cases are rising.  At 39 years old Dr Anisha Patel (@doctorsgetcancertoo), a practicing GP, was diagnosed with stage 3 bowel cancer. Now, 6 years on, Anisha is dedicated to raising awareness of cancer, especially in adults under 50. In this episode we talk to Anisha discussing her diagnosis, her book and helping the Cancer Grand Challenges team, PROSPECT, work out the cause for the increase in numbers.Anisha's book:Everything You Hoped You’d Never Need to Know about Bowel CancerRead more about team PROSPECTFor more cancer stories, visit Cancer News

Welcome to another episode of That Cancer Conversation!  April is Teenage and Young Adult Cancer Awareness Month, where charities and the young people we support come together to raise awareness of the unique challenges of having cancer during some of the most intense years of your life.   In this episode Sophie speaks to Shaumya, who was 18 years old and getting ready to go to medical school when she was diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma, right in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Since joining the The Royal Marsden Youth Forum, Shaumya has been an advocate for age-appropriate care for teenagers and young adults.  She co-hosts her own cancer podcast, Afterthoughts: The Teenage Years, highlighting teenage voices, and is also part of the Cancer Research UK for Children & Young People Patient Insight Panel, where she helps make sure people affected by cancer are always at the heart of our work. Recently, she’s helped choose our new logo and spoken to researchers from across the UK at our first Children’s and Young People’s Cancer Research Conference.  To read more cancer stories visit https://news.cancerresearchuk.org/

We’re back with another episode of our subseries, Longer, better lives! This series unpacks our recently published manifesto, Longer, Better Lives: A Manifesto for Cancer Research and Care.    You might recognise our next guest, as she was part of our ‘Together We Are Beating Cancer’ campaign featuring on a TV advert as well as billboards and posters on display across the UK, during September.  Dr Mei-Ling Lancashire is a GP who was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer 2 years ago. In this episode, Sophie sits with Mei-Ling to talk about her cancer experience and why she believes politicians need to start prioritising cancer.   To join us in telling party leaders to back our calls for longer, better lives, you can sign our open letter.   Read the manifestoSign our open letterSign up to be a Campaigns Ambassador For more cancer stories, visit Cancer News

We’ve made huge progress on cancer in the last 50 years. But not all of it has been felt equally. People’s experience of the healthcare system, and ultimately how likely they are to be successfully diagnosed and treated, varies massively. These are known as health inequalities and can be caused by a range of factors. In this episode of That Cancer Conversation, we’re exploring how deprivation impacts cancer inequalities and what we can do to narrow the gap. We speak to Cancer Research advocate and public health manager for Luton, Elizabeth Bailey, the lead researcher of the Inequalities Cancer Outcome Network programme, Professor Bernard Rachet and Julia Cotterill, a health information officer here at Cancer Research UK.   Find out more about World Cancer Day:  https://www.worldcancerday.org/close-care-gap https://news.cancerresearchuk.org/2024/02/02/world-cancer-day-2024/ Find out more about ICON and their work Read more about health inequalities   For more cancer stories, visit Cancer News