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Scientific Advisory Board Members

By its very nature, medical research is expensive and takes a long time to complete - even assuming that the ideas being investigated ultimately bear fruit, which is inevitably not always the case. It’s critical to make sure that the work the charity supports is of the highest quality, and also managed cost-effectively – not just for its own sake, but for the thousands of people whose generous donations enable its funding. Although Orchid’s Board of Trustees contains medical professionals, it is essential to have the independent opinion of eminent individuals in the field. Therefore, the charity is honoured to have the assistance of a prestigious Scientific Advisory Board, under the chairmanship of Professor Norman Maitland of York University, to review its funded research.

Current Members include: Professor Norman Maitland, Molecular Biology; Professor Anders Bjartell, Urology; Professor Nick James, Clinical Oncology; Professor Guido Jenster, Urology; Professor Margaret Knowles, Molecular Biology and Genetics; Professor Hing Lung, Urology and Surgical Oncology.

An Overview of Orchid's Research by Professor Norman Maitland
Professor Tim Oliver's vision of a Male Cancer Research Unit at Bart's Hospital was made reality by the support of Orchid. To attack a complex and multifaceted disease like men's cancer: testicular, penis and prostate in particular, requires the co-operation of different specialities: both medically and scientifically. The Orchid researchers provide an unrivalled national framework within the same institution to carry out translational research. The tissue bank which the clinical researchers Drs Jonathan Shamash and Tom Powles have built up alongside the expertise of pathologist Dr Dan Berney is a major resource. Scientific studies will increasingly be carried out on primary human tissues, as new treatments become more sophisticated, and the foresight to establish this resource was remarkable. Human tissue banks are important for the in-house scientific studies, using the expertise of a talented cancer geneticists, Dr Yong-Jie Lu. Genes and areas of chromosomal involvement identified in his studies have the potential to unravel some of the clinical complexities of these diseases and should lead in the longer term to novel approaches to treat and even cure the tumours. Already progress in testicular cancer research (not just in the Orchid laboratories) has resulted in a high response to treatment, whereas 30 years ago 1 in 5 men died of the disease within 5 years of diagnosis. Internationally, the testicular cancer resource, participation in pan-European clinical trials, and co-operation with scientists in the USA as part of the Transatlantic Prostate Group identify the Orchid-funded researchers as a significant force in men's cancer research.