HELP SHAPE FUTURE BOWEL CANCER RESEARCH

Today is World Cancer Day and we’re celebrating the ongoing work of COLO-SPEED, the innovative bowel cancer project we funded thanks to your wonderful support.

Clinical trials are vital, so why not join the COLO-SPEED Research Network, and help drive forward the research needed to improve the lives of all those affected by bowel cancer?

Members will be offered the opportunity to take part in a range of activities, including:

• Co-developing new research ideas and funding applications
• Taking part in current or future research studies, as participants
• Finding out about research results, through the website, by attending in-person and online patient meetings, as well as research showcase events

In 2019, our Foundation made a grant of £985,000 to fund an innovative bowel cancer research project called COLO-SPEED (Colorectal Cancer Screening Prevention Endoscopy and Early Diagnosis).

The project aims to speed up research, improve clinical practice and, ultimately, save lives.

The COLO-SPEED team is now leading some of the world’s largest bowel cancer studies and has recruited over 25,000 patients to help with its research.

Now a new online COLO-SPEED platform has been launched so members of the public, whether or not they have experienced bowel cancer themselves, can sign up to actively contribute or simply find out more about research into the disease.

Professor Colin Rees

Heading up COLO-SPEED is Colin Rees, Professor of Gastroenterology at Newcastle University, Honorary Consultant at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust and President of the British Society of Gastroenterology.

Colin said: “Clinical studies are absolutely vital to cancer research and with this new online platform it’s easy to find out more about those studies, or to actively contribute to them.

“To put it simply, the more people who help support research, the greater the opportunity we have to understand more about bowel cancer.

“As many as 44 people die from bowel cancer every day in the UK and many of those deaths are preventable. Our research is aimed at preventing the disease, or, where that is not possible, finding it early.

“Together we can reduce the number of people dying from it and I’d urge anyone with an interest in changing cancer outcomes to sign up via our website.”

Signing up is a quick and simple process and members of the new online COLO-SPEED platform can choose to take part in a range of activities and decide how much, or how little, they wish to be involved.

North East football legends, Tony Mowbray, Gary Pallister and Bob Moncur showed their support for COLO-SPEED by attending the launch of new online platform.

Tony Mowbray commented: “I’m very impressed by what I’ve heard today about COLO-SPEED and the research that’s happening.

“I’d encourage anyone to get involved and to help move things forward even faster.”

For more information about COLO-SPEED, or to join the online platform, please visit: https://portal.colospeed.co.uk/login