Page 25 - Sphere No.19 (Jun 2007)

diagnoses which will in turn mean better treatment. It is a huge
investment and will make this a major regional cancer centre. We
have put all the foundations in place.”
News of what is happening inCambridge hasmade itsway down
the international scientific grapevine; researchers from the United
States, a nation that has the funds to attract the brightest and best,
are following developments with keen interest. So far a total of 28
senior cancer researchers have signed up for the programme, all
with heavyweight qualifications and years of experience.
“It is an expensive and ambitious project which will enable
cutting-edge academic research to be translated most effective-
ly into the clinical setting,” says Professor Ponder. “Cambridge’s
broad-based but integrated cancer research community will be
uniquely well placed to take this forward in the future.
“We intend to create a ‘virtual National Health Service lab-
oratory’ in which the framework of the health service can be
used to evaluate the practical applications of our research to-
wards early detection and prevention of cancer and towards the
early choice of the most appropriate treatment.”
In practice, that means that a young Cambridge woman un-
fortunate enough to discover she has breast cancer can take
some small comfort from the knowledge that her case will be
receiving attention from her local physician and, in the back-
ground, be part of a far bigger project. Researchers will be able
to track for genetic patterns, information that, when processed,
will lead to better assessment for treatment and narrow down
the causes. In essence, it will make it way easier to determine
who, exactly, is at most risk of developing the dreaded disease.
The project will largely focus on the common cancers... breast,
prostate, colon, lung, oesophagus and ovary. Already there have
SPHERE 23
Symbol of Health
focusing on the work being carried out at Cambridge University
PEOPLE visiting Cambridge Uni-
versity’s state-of-the-art cancer
reseach centre will pass by a
striking modern work by Chinese sculp-
tor Ju Ming.
TheTaichi Arch – Gate of Health, a large
bronze sculpture, was commissioned by
Mr Li Ka-shing in order to give the grounds
a strong artistic component. Mr Li believes
this magnificent sculpture is in synch with
the work at the institute and cites Albert
Einstein’s inspirational thoughts on the
links between art and science.
“All religions, arts and sciences are
branches of the same tree,” Einstein
said. “All these aspirations are directed
toward ennobling man’s life, lifting it
from the sphere of mere physical ex-
istence and leading the individual to-
wards freedom.”
The sculptor, who is known for his
bold outdoor works, grew up in a poor
family with 11 other siblings. His artis-
tic talent was revealed when he began
carving images for a Buddhist temple as
a teenager.
Mr Ju worked and studied in China
before heading toTaiwan, Japan and Italy
to further his knowledge. The master
is renowned for massive polished-steel
sculptures that can be found in France,
Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong.