Our research by cancer topic
120 years of life-saving discoveries
Our scientists have been at the forefront of cancer research since 1902.
Thanks to you, we’ve come so far. And we will go much further.
Together, we will beat cancer.
Over a century of life-saving research
Cancer Research UK was formed 20 years ago, in 2002. However, our history goes back much further, to 1902, with the founding of the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. From studies of the intricate workings of molecules within cells to the results of large-scale clinical trials of treatments, every result helps to deepen our understanding of cancer and find new ways to fight it. Find out more about our research by topic below.
Further information
Our strategy to beat cancer sooner
Over the last 40 years, cancer survival rates in the UK have doubled. In the 1970s just 1 in 4 people survived their disease for 10 years or more. Today 2 in 4 survive.
We want to accelerate progress and see 3 in 4 patients surviving the disease by 2034.