Despite efforts, cancer institute warns advances for patients could be delayed by two years
Many cancer researchers are working through the night to minimise the impact of Covid-19 on their work, according to the Institute for Cancer Research.
One year on from the pandemic, the ICR has warned that tightened restrictions in response to new variants of the virus have limited laboratory research time—and slowed the race to find new cancer treatments.
The institute estimates that at the start of the latest lockdown the number of researchers able to access labs fell by almost 30 per cent on top of the restrictions that already existed before Christmas.
As a result, researchers are making up for lost time by working extremely early in the morning or late into the night, it said.
According to the institute, almost 30 per cent of shifts in labs begin outside of standard contracted hours—either at the weekend or between the hours of midnight and 8am, or 8pm and midnight.
‘Greatest threat in generations’
Paul Workman, chief executive of the ICR, said the pandemic had “posed the greatest threat to cancer research in generations”.
“Unfortunately, cancer hasn’t been waiting for us—it remains as big a challenge as ever,” he said.
“Without extra funding to address the effects of the pandemic and plug holes in research budgets, cancer patients could end up waiting an extra two years to benefit from research discoveries.
He added that the institute needs “as much support as possible to ensure that our research can make up lost ground in finding the new treatments that will make a difference for patients”.
Since the pandemic started, the ICR has had research grants from charities cut by around £8 million—a reduction of about 20 per cent in total annual funding from charity grants. It also fears further cuts in grants are on the way.