The North-East is now the front line in the war against cancer. Health Editor Barry Nelson finds out how one man's vision became reality.

A FEW years ago, cancer scientist Professor Herbie Newell had a vision. He dreamt of a new research institute based on Tyneside which would house a small army of scientists and cancer specialists.

The idea was to bring together under one roof a multi-disciplinary team which could become a world force in the competitive world of developing new cancer therapies. It would also mean that North-East patients would be the first in the world to benefit from new cancer drugs.

Assembling a team of top scientists was the first task, and by the late 1990s, most of the key players in Prof Newell's dream team were already in place. But the problem was that the scientists, doctors and nurses were scattered across various faculties and departments of Newcastle University.

The idea of bringing four well-established research teams together in one building began to take shape, so a formal proposal to establish a new centre, to be known as the Northern Institute for Cancer Research, was floated in 2000 and was well received. Crucially, a suitable site next to Newcastle Medical School and close to the Royal Victoria Infirmary was identified.

Only one small matter remained - raising almost £12m to build and equip the new drug research centre - and Prof Newell, head of cancer therapeutics at Newcastle University, was the man who had to go cap in hand to a variety of funding agencies.

"You have a project which will cost just under £12m and you are walking into the office of a potential funder for the first time," he says. "You say 'I would like a contribution', they say, 'how much do you need?' You say, '£12m'. They say, 'how much have you got?' You say, 'nothing'. At that point, it doesn't sound very credible, does it?"

But to his amazement, that first response was, 'yes, we will give you £2m'.

Prof Newell got his positive response at the office of Children With Leukaemia, a remarkable charity set up by the parents of a teenage cancer victim. Paul O'Gorman was just 14 when he was diagnosed with leukaemia, a cancer of the blood which is the biggest single killer of children in the UK. Just three months later, in February 1987, Paul died.

During his illness, Paul was shocked at how children suffered with leukaemia and was moved by how courageous they could be in adversity. Just before he died, the youngster begged his family and friends to do something for other children with leukaemia.

Shortly after Paul's death, his parents, wealthy Hertfordshire businessman Eddie O'Gorman and his wife, Marion, launched a fund raising campaign in Paul's name.

Initially the campaign was headed by Paul's elder sister, Jean, but sadly, she became seriously ill with breast cancer and died, aged 29, just months after her brother.

Determined to press on and carry out Paul and Jean's wishes, the O'Gorman family received a fantastic boost when Diana, Princess of Wales, agreed to formally launch the charity in January 1988.

Princess Diana's endorsement gave the charity the high profile it needed and within a relatively short period the O'Gormans had raised £1m towards the cost of a new leukaemia centre at the world-renowned children's hospital in Great Ormond Street.

Named the Paul O'Gorman Centre, the Great Ormond Street unit was just the first of a series of research and treatment units across the UK to bear the name of their son. The others are at Bristol, Manchester and Glasgow.

Sitting in one of the well-equipped laboratories at the newly opened Northern Institute for Cancer Research Paul O'Gorman building, Prof Newell says he cannot stress the importance of that initial donation too much. "They were the catalyst that brought in the funding from other bodies," he says.

It took a further six months to pull together all the funds needed but Prof Newell knew he was pushing at an open door once the initial donation had been secured.

The key role of the O'Gorman family was reflected at this week's official opening ceremony, a year to the day since scientists moved into the new centre. Eddie and Marion O'Gorman were among a large audience of supporters who watched football legend Sir Bobby Robson unveil a commemorative plaque. Poignantly, Sir Bobby himself is a two times cancer survivor. In 1992 he was successfully treated for bowel cancer. Three years later, after his wife, Elsie, "nagged" him to see his GP over a persistent sinus problem, he underwent surgery for a rare form of malignant melanoma.

Among the audience were representatives of the Government's Science Research Investment Fund which contributed the largest single sum - £4.3m. The next largest contributor was Cancer Research UK which stumped up another £4m. The balance was made up by donations from Newcastle University (£500,000); the Leukaemia Research Fund (£300,000); the North of England Children's Cancer Research Fund (£300,000) and the Newcastle Hospitals and Healthcare charity (£350,000).

As The Northern Echo exclusively revealed this week, the first fruits of the new institute are already helping North-East patients in their battle against cancer.

The unit's first new cancer drug is a wholly new type of therapy, which works by disabling a protective mechanism in cancer cells, allowing conventional drugs or radiotherapy to kill off the out-of-control cells.

It is the first of a family of similar drugs which are being developed by new institute. Full details will be published at a major international conference in America later this year.

"We are developing a number of different drugs along those lines although not all are in clinical trials," says Prof Newell. The aim is to try to develop a new drug for trial in the North-East every year.

Prof Newell believes that humanity is destined to win its long war with cancer in the not too distant future.

Because of developments in science, including the cracking of the human genetic code, he believes that, one day, all cancers will probably be treatable.

"The new generation of cancer drugs we are developing are designed to hit the Achilles' heel of tumours," he says. "In time, no type of cancer should be seen as a death sentence."

* Cancer Research UK invests £2m on a range of research projects at Newcastle University. Every year, around 13,000 adults and between 80 and 100 children are diagnosed with cancer in the Northern region.

To contact Children With Leukaemia, visit www.leukaemia.org or ring 020 74040808.

For information about Cancer Research UK, visit www.cancerresearchuk.org or ring the local fundraising office on 0191-281 8288.