Dr. Jennifer Munkley's revolutionary test gets huge boost as your donations soar past £585,000

Back in February Dr. Jennifer Munkley asked for your help to catch prostate cancer earlier for men like broadcaster Bill Turnbull and her grandad, who was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer during lockdown. Yesterday, she secured new funding to develop the test.

Dr. Munkley is one of several researchers you fund looking at better ways to test for prostate cancer. And she may have the test that men need. Her work studies glycans, groups of sugars on the outside of prostate cancer cells that could be exploited to improve diagnosis and treatment of aggressive disease. 

Unlike the PSA test, her GlycoScore blood test can accurately differentiate between low-risk prostate cancer and cancer that needs urgent treatment, which means it could be used as part of a national screening programme for prostate cancer.

Yesterday, Jennifer learnt that the GlycoScore test has now secured the funding needed to take this research to the next level. Thanks to your help early on, several investors are now stepping in to support Dr.Munkley and her team develop this test further.

Today, Dr. Munkley has a message for you –  straight from the lab.

Thank you to everyone who helped raise an incredible £593,267 to support Dr Jennifer Munkley's vital research.@MunkleyLab, whose grandfather was diagnosed with prostate cancer in lockdown, recorded this special message from the lab. 🔬

Read more: https://t.co/622o3VvLvD pic.twitter.com/6paPchD22F

— Prostate Cancer UK (@ProstateUK) May 6, 2021

Matthew Hobbs, Director of Research at Prostate Cancer UK, said “Prostate Cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the UK but the tests we currently use to diagnose it are simply not good enough. The current tests send many men without cancer for further investigations they don’t need, causing them distress and unnecessary side effects, and adding cost to the NHS. At the same time, those current tests also miss far too many aggressive cancers entirely. Improving diagnosis of prostate cancer is therefore of utmost importance and is a strategic priority.

“That’s why we’re delighted that the research we funded to develop a new test led to such impressive early results and that GlycoScore has now secured the funding needed to take this research to the next level. We look forward to supporting the company through those next steps to ensure this exciting new research makes a difference to men as quickly as possible.”

Research takes a lot of time, and there are quite a few clinical, and important steps that must take place before anything can reach men, but we are thrilled to be a little closer to a screening programme thanks to your continued support.