MP takes five to help research kill cancer

Jim Dobbin MP

Heywood and Middleton MP Jim Dobbin has become a ‘citizen scientist’ to help Cancer Research UK fight cancer.

He took five minutes out of his busy parliamentary schedule to take a turn on the new Cell SliderTM website, which could help the charity to bring forward the day when all cancers are cured.

With just a few minutes and a few clicks of the mouse, Cell SliderTM is the first ever interactive website to turn real archive cancer data into a format that can be analysed by the public.

It presents real images of tumour samples in the form of a simple game of snap. Users are guided through a tutorial explaining which cells to analyse and which ones to ignore.

At the moment, the process of identifying certain molecules in cancer cells which help scientists understand why people respond differently to cancer treatment, is slow.

That’s why Cancer Research UK has launched www.cellslider.net to help accelerate groundbreaking research.

By getting the public to become ‘citizen scientists’, more samples will be analysed faster and more effectively, freeing up Cancer Research UK’s experts to carry out other cancer research. More than half a million images have already been analysed.

Cell SliderTM comes as predictions show that the number of people with cancer in the UK is set to rise steeply by 2030. Every hour, more than 4 people in the North West are diagnosed with cancer.*

Mr Dobbin said: “Research is cancer’s number one enemy, so I urge everyone in my constituency to take five minutes to get involved with this exciting initiative and help Cancer Research UK’s doctors and scientists to keep making huge advances in the battle against all cancers. The program is so easy to use, meaning everyone can play their part in helping to beat cancer from the comfort of their own homes.

“While more of us will be diagnosed with cancer in future, there is good news. Thanks to the generosity of its supporters, the charity’s work is helping to ensure more men, women and children survive the disease.

“That’s why I’m calling on the local community to go on  www.cellslider.net and help Cancer Research UK beat cancer sooner.”

Cancer Research UK’s Executive Director of Policy and Information, Sarah Woolnough, said: “Every step we make towards beating cancer relies on the support of the public, so we hope would-be ‘citizen scientists’ in Heywood and Middleton will really get behind this campaign.

“We’re so pleased to have the support of Jim Dobbin MP with raising awareness, as there’s still so much more we need to do to ensure no-one’s life is cut short by cancer. But by boosting our ability to analyse data quickly with the help of ‘citizen scientists’, our world-class research teams will be able to develop better ways to prevent, control and cure the disease and help save many more lives.”

To find out more about how to support Cancer Research UK, please visit cruk.org