Katherine Bridge crowdfunding with YuStart

Centre for Blood Research study on rare blood cancers in Yorkshire

Researching blood cancers in york

Researchers in the Centre for Blood Research (CBR), University of York are studying a rare type of blood cancer called myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) in people in York and Yorkshire. The study launched in May 2024, and partners with York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Participants in the study donate extra samples of blood, which can then be studied by the research team to better understand how these cancers start, develop and can be treated more effectively.

meet the team

We are a team of early career researchers and clinicians who are passionate about making fundamental scientific discoveries that change the landscape of cancer treatment for people with blood cancer.

Principal Investigator: Dr Katherine Bridge.

Co-Investigators: Dr Alyssa Cull, Prof David Kent, Prof Ian Hitchcock.

Research team: Ellie Bennet, Joanna Milek, Sophie Turner, Sam, Jakub Lukazonek.

Clinical Principal Investigator: Dr Kate Foley; Haematology Pharmacist: Danielle Powdry.

our motivation

Every single person knows someone whose life has been affected by cancer. Our team is no different, and we each carry our own story and motivation for the work we do.

"Watching my Uncle Mike endure chemotherapy and a failed bone marrow transplant opened my eyes to the reality of what treatment is like for people with blood cancer", says study PI, Dr Katherine Bridge. "I started my own lab researching blood cancer in the same year that he passed away from a treatment-related infection. I'm determined and convinced that science and medicine can and will do better, to develop smarter, kinder therapies for people with cancer for the future".

Where will the money go?

The BLOCK study is primarily funded by good will. We've started small to show what we can do, and have big plans to build a one-of-a-kind research project in York and Yorkshire; linking fundamental scientific findings to real world life and epidemiology factors through the Haematology Malignancy Research Network that we're a part of. Even the smallest donation can make a big difference:

£5-10 will cover transport costs for blood samples between the Hospital and the University for a week
£50 will pay for a bag of blood sample vials
£100 will pay for the flow cytometry machine costs to analyse one blood sample
£500 will pay for a kit of reagents / antibodies to analyse blood samples
£1000 will pay for one researcher for a month to process and analyse samples