Patients in Greater Manchester are set to spearhead a genetic revolution to help fight cancer and rare diseases.

The citys St Marys Hospital has been named as one of 11 Genomic Medicine Centres, which together will map the complete genetic codes of 100,000 patients.

The three-year project, unveiled by the Prime Minister earlier this year, is a bold bid to transform diagnosis and treatment.

It will allow doctors to learn more about cancer and rare conditions by decoding and exploring human genomes - complete sets of peoples genes.

University of Manchester scientists and doctors at St Marys will work closely with colleagues at Salford Royal, The Christie, Wythenshawe Hospital and the Pennine Acute Hospitals Trust on the project.

Bill Newman, professor of translational Genomic medicine at the Manchester Centre for Genomic Medicine at the University of Manchester and honorary consultant at Central Manchester University Hospitals Trust, said doctors, nurses and scientists at the Manchester Centre for Genomic Medicine, based at St Marys, were delighted to have been selected for the pioneering project.

He said: They plan to work with colleagues to use the new type of genetic testing called whole genome sequencing to find out why some people have certain types of rare health problems and to treat people with cancer more effectively.

The project is expected to revolutionise the future of healthcare. It could improve the prediction and prevention of disease, enable new diagnostic tests, and allow treatments to be personalised.

It could also allow patients with rare conditions to be diagnosed more quickly and unlock the secrets of genetic changes in cancer.

St Marys and The Christie have already been part of a pilot phase of the project.

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St Mary's Hospital to lead genetic revolution in fight against cancer and rare diseases