The University of York has received a donation of £2.15m from a cancer charity house to rev up prostate cancer stem cell research. Scientists and researchers at the University will research and analyze the molecular properties of prostate cancer cells and try to find out how  and why they are resistant to treatment, how they behave and what allows them to survive under treatment conditions. Research so far has not been able to pin point the exact cause of prostate cancer at the molecular level .The ongoing research is expected to change the paradigms.

Prostate cancer is by far the largest killer disease affecting men and all men over 50 are at high risk of getting affected by the disease which can be a serious threat to lifestyle if not fatal. Prostate cancer can be a very painful condition and it seriously affects the lives of people suffering from it. The available medications are only so good as to alleviate pain temporarily, but have minimal effects on the long term complications and threats. The research being conducted at the University of York is anticipated to bring ground breaking results and provide insights into how prostate cancer cells behave and spread.

The aim of this research is to develop a new generation of cancer drugs that can target the prostate cancer cells and pull the plug on the cause of the disease. Scientists at the university will explore the molecular properties that allow the cells to survive, spread and resist treatment. They aim to make a new generation of cancer drugs to target the cells and tackle the cause of the disease. The protagonist behind this research project is Professor Maitland who is recognized the world over for his contributions in prostate cancer stem cell research.

Professor Maitland is not only the last word as far as prostate cancer stem cell research is concerned, but also the one who owns the most hi-tech research lab in the field of prostate cancer and has said that his research team would invest time into analyzing the DNA strands of prostate cancer cells and try to find the missing puzzle pieces that could bear the answer to prostate cancer. His laboratory is the only one of its kind that can facilitate the extraction and analysis of prostate cancer cells right out of a victim’s body.