A photo of two young female scientists examining something carefully in a lab

What we do

All new lifesaving tests and treatments for cancer are reliant on discovery research like the projects you help us fund.

We're Worldwide Cancer Research

We're the UK charity that will end cancer by starting new cancer cures worldwide.

See our impact

We're here to start new cancer cures.

The research journey is a long one. It can take up to 20 years for the ideas we fund to lead to new cures. But there won't be an end to cancer if we don't start at the beginning. And that's exactly what we do.

Cancer is set to become the world's biggest killer by 2030 and the number of people diagnosed with cancer globally will continue to increase. Although survival rates for some cancers have improved dramatically, others are lagging behind.

With the support of our Curestarter community, we will continue to fund innovative cancer research that will find new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer - and save lives in the future.

Find out more about the type of research we fund

2030

It's predicted that cancer will be the world's biggest killer by 2030.

114

The number of potential new cures we started between 2017 and 2021.

How will we solve this problem? By starting new cancer cures for the future.

We only fund pioneering discovery research around the world - which means our researchers are seeking to discover entirely new knowledge about cancer. All new lifesaving tests and treatments for cancer are reliant on discovery research like the projects you help us fund.

We fund research into any type cancer and we look for the very best ideas from around the world. This approach ensures we are tackling the biggest challenges in cancer research right now that will have the most impact on people in the future.

Our research projects

We can't fund every bold idea we see

It’s not that new cures for cancer aren’t out there, it’s that we don’t have the money to fund all the ideas we see. Every year we are missing out on research that could be the start of new cancer cures for the future. Between 2017 and 2021 we have had to let 565 new potential cures for cancer go because we couldn’t fund them.

And globally, funding for discovery research, the type of research we fund, is also in decline. Since 2006, funding for early-stage discovery cancer research has declined by 25%. If we don't continue to support these new ideas, the pipeline of future tests and treatments for cancer will run dry.

Help us start new cures for cancer

We're Curestarters. Are you?

By starting new cures we will end cancer, but we can't do it alone. We're entirely reliant on the kindness and generosity of our supporters. Together, we can make a real impact and save more lives - now and in the future.

We're currently able to fund around 20 new research projects a year thanks to the generosity of our Curestarter community. But each year we have to let around 80 new ideas go because we simply do not have the funds.

Your support will help us move towards our goal of being able to fund all 100 discoveries a year. Join our community of Curestarters today and help us start new cancer cures.

Become a Curestarter today

The cancer drug olaparib has already helped over 40,000 people with cancer - and it was all made possible by discovery research that you helped us fund.

Find out more about this lifesaving discovery