In an acknowledgement of the NHS Trust’s distinction, The Christie has been named one of the first European Prostate Cancer Centres of Excellence, becoming the first and only facility in the UK to receive such acclaim.
In order to obtain the status, the Trust had to meet a series of criteria set by the European Association of Urology. The criteria covered three key areas:
- Research
- Education
- Clinical Care
Professor Chris Harrison, Executive Director at The Christie, said: “We are delighted to receive this recognition from the European Association of Urology. Prostate cancer affects so many people and we look forward to working with the other facilities to address some of the biggest challenges in the field. We’re proud to be one of the only comprehensive cancer centres on the list, with expertise in everything from radiotherapy and chemotherapy to research and specialist surgery.”
It is hoped that by establishing these centres of excellence, Europe’s foremost health professionals can share insight and expertise and ultimately work together to tackle the biggest challenges in prostate cancer science today.
The esteemed sites will also act as training grounds, educating and moulding the next generation of clinicians and scientists.
Professor Christopher Chapple, Secretary General of the European Association of Urology, said: “The Christie is well-renowned for its expertise in cancer care, research and education – all the things we were looking for. The team are really experienced and they’ve got a strong set of patient data. Prostate cancer detection, diagnosis and treatment will be improved by the work they and the other centres do.”
As well as being one of the inaugural European Centres of Excellence, The Christie is also a Movember Centre of Excellence, which were setup across the UK by Prostate Cancer UK and the Movember Foundation in 2014.
Approximately 400,000 men are currently living with prostate cancer in the UK, with the disease being one of the most common types of cancer.
