How is the Welsh Government working to expand the research capacity of Cancer Research UK in Wales?
Cancer Research UK is an independent charity and the largest public and charitable funder of cancer research in the UK. Through Health and Care Research Wales, and its predecessor organisations, the Welsh Government has a long history of engaging extensively with Cancer Research UK as a funding partner across a wide range of initiatives, and, for the last 22 years, as a fellow member of the National Cancer Research Institute with a host of other cancer research funders.
In the current calendar year, the Welsh Government will continue to co-fund, with Cancer Research UK, the Experimental Cancer Medicine Centre (ECMC) at Cardiff University and the Welsh arm of the ECMC paediatric research network. We will continue to invest in the implementation of the Cancer Research Strategy for Wales (CReSt), the Wales Cancer Research Centre and the Wales Cancer Bank, for example, to enhance the capacity and capability of the Welsh cancer research community and improve its ability to capture external research funding from Cancer Research UK and other funders.
Cancer Research UK’s figures suggest that every £1 invested in cancer research generates £2.80 in economic benefit. These findings are compatible with our own Heath and Care Research Wales report Impact and value of research supported by NHS organisations in Wales (healthandcareresearchwales.org) which considered gross value added and jobs created. There is clear direct economic benefit in Welsh researchers winning research grants that brings funding into Wales and creates high-quality jobs through undertaking research for patient and public benefit.
The funding of health and care research and its delivery crosses national borders and requires a collaborate effort. We thus continue to work in partnership with a range of funders, including the research councils, the other UK government health departments, industry and the research charities to stimulate, grow and improve the research environment. In this context, Cancer Research UK continues to be a key research partner.