In a drive to highlight cancer research, the Swedish Cancer Foundation awards 19 Million SEK to SciLifeLab researcher Yumeng Mao and five other researchers at Uppsala University. “I am very happy to receive the trust of the Cancer Foundation to continue conducting my research. We believe that this will accelerate the development of immunotherapy regarding, for example, breast cancer and lung cancer”, says Yumeng Mao.

“We have every reason to feel hope – the research on cancer is advancing and today we have developed methods that just a few years ago felt like pure science fiction. The Cancer Foundation has been a big part of that journey and we are now continuing to fund the strongest research with talented researchers”, says Klas Kärre, chairman of the Cancer Foundation’s research committee, in a press release.

“Over the next 30 years, cancer research will make progress that we can not imagine”, he continues. 

Immunotherapy draws investments

SciLifeLab researcher Yumeng Mao (Uppsala University) is conducting research within the field of immunotherapy – a field advancing major breakthroughs in contemporary cancer treatment techniques. Especially in treating malign melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer. In the 50s, only one in three cancer patients survived. Since then the odds of surviving have increased to almost 66 percent.

Immunotherapy upregulates the body’s own immune system into a more active state, enabling it to attack tumor cells – although the treatment is not effective for all patients and forms of cancer. 

Now, Yumeng Mao aims to examine a certain type of myeloid immune cells and explore new ways to activate the immune system.

“The research makes a difference and I am glad that we now can distribute an additional SEK 117,2 million to research positions. If the research is allowed to continue at the same pace, I think we can go far. We can’t imagine the discoveries that will come from this research within the coming 30 years, says Klas Kärre.

A total of 29 research positions have been distributed across four universities:

• Karolinska Institutet: 15 research positions
• Lund University: 8 research positions
• Uppsala University: 5 research positions
• University of Gothenburg: 1 research position