Spotlight on cancer cures

Skin cancer has increased three-fold

The future treatment and possible cures for cancer are to be discussed at a major international conference in Glasgow.

It will involve some of the world's leading experts from America, Europe and the UK.

The four-day Beatson International Cancer Conference will look at genomic regulation and cancer.

It is hoped that, by studying how human cells change to cause cancer, scientists can understand how to develop cures.

Lung cancer is one of the biggest killers

Every year more than 26,OOO Scots are told they have cancer, and 15,OOO people die from the disease.

Among women, lung cancer is now the biggest killer, and the incidence of skin cancer amongst Scots under the age of 40 has risen three-fold in just over 20 years.

It is now known that all cancers are caused by damage to critical genes which control elements such as the life span of a cell, or when and where it divides or multiplies.

The conference will hear about work carried out in Scotland on ways of overcoming drug resistance and research from the United States which paints a picture of the key changes which occur during cancer's development.

The conference is described as a significant landmark for cancer research.