Gerard Evan PhD, FRS, FMedSci

Professor Gerard Evan and his team in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Cambridge are studying the genes that drive the development and growth of cancer, called oncogenes.

Professor Evan’s work focuses on a gene called Myc, which helps tumors grow, spread and develop a blood supply. Many scientists think that drugs targeting Myc could be a good way to treat cancer. But Myc has many different roles within healthy cells, as well as in cancer cells. Professor Evan and his team are figuring out exactly how Myc works, both in healthy tissue and in several types of cancer, including lung and pancreatic cancers. They are also testing drugs that can block Myc as well as search for other genes that work with it, which could also be good targets for future cancer treatments.