Manchester Breast Centre (MBC) is delighted to announce the appointment of Dr Sacha Howell as Director and Dr Sankari Nagarajan as Deputy Director of the MBC, commencing on 1st January 2025.
Professor Rob Clarke, will be stepping down as Director of the MBC at the end of 2024 after successfully leading the Centre for the last ten years. During this time, the MBC has grown to become a highly active hub for basic and translational breast research, and one of the largest collective groups of basic and clinical breast researchers worldwide.
The MBC is focused on four broad areas comprising basic laboratory research, risk and prevention studies, surgical studies including surgically-related trials, and oncology-trials. There is strong Team Science approach and collaboration between MBC basic and clinical researchers, which results in reciprocal interactions between the two, as well as novel translational strategies to address the key questions and translate research into clinical practice.
“I believe the MBC will be in very capable hands and I am sure that Sacha and Sankari will work closely together as a team to nurture the MBC and its activities to ensure the future is bright for the Manchester breast research community.” Professor Clarke said.
Incoming Director, Dr Sacha Howell said “We owe Professor Clarke a huge debt of gratitude for steering the MBC through some stormy waters during his tenure, particularly the Paterson fire and Covid-19. Despite these difficult circumstances the MBC has gone from strength to strength with investigators leading on major programmatic grant funding and internationally recognised research. I look forward to taking the helm, ably assisted by Sankari, to continue this work and drive forward the basic and translational breast research agenda in Manchester.”
Incoming Deputy Director, Dr Sankari Nagarajan stated "I am very much looking forward to this role where I feel proud to represent women scientists in the field of biological research in breast cancer. Hoping to achieve something towards developing Manchester Breast Centre as an internationally renowned centre with strong collaborations."
The MBC was founded by Tony Howell, Charles Streuli and Nigel Bundred in 2005, with the aim of bringing together Manchester’s basic and clinical breast researchers to translate our research findings from the laboratory into the clinic, thereby improving the prevention and treatment of breast cancer.
Professor Gareth Evans, also played an integral role in the development and success of the MBC as the elected Chair from October 2010 to November 2014.
The MBC started with 7 Principal Investigators whose research was focused on the breast and breast cancer, but quickly grew and gained recognition as a centre for breast research within the Manchester Cancer Research Centre, University of Manchester. Over the years, it has matured into a collaborative group numbering nearly 40 Principal Investigators and Associate Members. The group includes research support staff with more than 60 post-doctoral research associates, research assistants, research nurses and dieticians. It includes a large cohort of clinical fellows and non-clinical scientists who complete PhD research training projects. Currently, MBC comprises over 100 researchers funded by a broad spectrum of governmental and charity resources including UK Research and Innovation, the National Institute for Health Research, NC3Rs, Cancer Research UK, Wellcome Trust, Breast Cancer Now, Prevent Breast Cancer, The Christie Charity and the Lobular Moon Shot Project.
Research is carried out across Manchester in the labs of the University of Manchester, Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute and the clinical research centres in The Christie and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trusts.
Our research has impacted patients through the development of novel approaches to breast cancer risk prediction, prevention, treatment and supportive care. Now in its 20th year, the future goals of the MBC are to continue improving patient outcomes through first class research.
Notes to editors
Dr Sacha Howell is a Senior Clinical Lecturer at the University of Manchester and Honorary Consultant in Medical Oncology at the Christie and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trusts. His research interests are in translational breast oncology with the main focus on breast cancer prevention.
Dr Sankari Nagarajan is a Lecturer in Chromatin Biology at the University of Manchester, CRUK Career Establishment Award holder, and breast cancer research scientist investigating the transcriptional regulation of disease progression in breast cancers.
There are more than 50,000 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed in the UK each year, including more than 3,000 new cases diagnosed per annum in Greater Manchester. Treatments for breast cancer have advanced considerably over the past 40 years through the introduction of new targeted therapies such as tamoxifen and Herceptin, and better detection and surgery. While many with the disease can be successfully treated, there are still up to a quarter of patients who will eventually die of their disease.