Top honours for cancer researchers at 2019 Irish Cancer Society Research Awards

News Article | 22 Feb 2019

The vital work of cancer researchers and support staff was recognised at the Irish Cancer Society Research Awards.

The ceremony, held recently in Dublin’s ‘House of Lords’, celebrated the achievements of some of the 100-plus cancer researchers which, thanks to the public’s support, are funded by the Irish Cancer Society.

Watch our one-minute highlights video:

 

In an evening where the public learned about potentially life-saving research projects and advances, four awards were presented:

  • The Research Support Staff of the Year award went to Susan Nagle, Cancer Clinical Trials Research Nurse, University Hospital Limerick. Susan was nominated by her colleagues in Cancer Trials Ireland for her work in bridging the gap between patients and clinical trials, and was acknowledged for going ‘above and beyond’ in striving for patient care and well-being.
     
  • Research Paper of the Year was awarded to Dr Aideen Ryan, an Irish Cancer Society Bowel Cancer Research Fellow, for her scientific paper: ‘Stromal cell PD-L1 inhibits CD8+ T-cell antitumor immune responses and promotes colon cancer’, published in the journal Cancer Immunology Research.
     
  • Post-Doctoral (Senior) Researcher of the Year Award-winner Dr Emma Allott was the Irish Cancer Society’s John Fitzpatrick Research Fellow. Her work in the US and Ireland focussed on the potential role of cholesterol in increasing the chances of developing prostate cancer, and whether statins – drugs which lower cholesterol – can tackle the disease.
     
  • The PhD (Junior) Researcher of the Year Award was given to Dr Lisa Dwane of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland for her research finding new and better ways to treat a form of breast cancer driven by the hormone estrogen.

Lisa beat off stiff competition from fellow Irish Cancer Society-funded researchers Alexandra Tuzova and Dr Federico Lucantoni, after all three (pictured above) presented their research projects to a packed hall.

Alexandra is in the third year of her Irish Cancer Society-funded PhD in UCD, which is all about finding new ways to spot prostate cancers that may become aggressive.

Federico recently completed his PhD in RCSI Dublin. His project looked at how maths can be used to predict a breast cancer patient’s response to treatment, potentially saving them the harsh effects of treatments that may not be effective.

The Irish Cancer Society is the leading voluntary funder of cancer research in Ireland. Thanks to the public’s generosity, the Society is on track to invest €30 million in cancer research in the decade up to 2020.

Opening the evening, Irish Cancer Society CEO Averil Power said: “Cancer research has long been at the centre of the Irish Cancer Society’s work. Our motto is ‘We won’t give up until cancer does’. I don’t think anyone encapsulates that spirit better than our funded researchers.

“Our ability to invest in cancer research would not be possible without the incredible generosity of our fundraisers and supporters. Each Daffodil Day the Irish public excels themselves with their donations. We owe them a huge debt of gratitude, and hope they will continue to support us this Daffodil Day on Friday, March 22.”

Daffodil Day is proudly supported by Boots Ireland. Members of the public are urged to get involved by volunteering as fundraisers and donating what they can on the day. For more see cancer.ie/daffodilday.