Tristan Loraine
Tristan Loraine
29 April, 2025
News

Health Secretary Wes Streeting called to act on lobular breast cancer

Dr Susan Michaelis, the founder of the Lobular Moon Shot Project has called on Wes Streeting to fund a vital research project into lobular breast cancer like his predecessor Victoria Atkins had agreed to fund.

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Invasive Lobular Breast Cancer was first discovered in 1941 and is more common in women than ovarian, brain, kidney, pancreatic and liver cancer, yet has no specific treatment. (Cancer registrations statistics, England - NHS England Digital).

The Lobular Moon Shot Project (LMSP) is partnering with the world-leading Manchester Breast Centre (MBC). Together they are working to unlock the initial £20 million research funding to establish a UK-led collaborative approach to address the unmet clinical need of Invasive Lobular Breast Cancer (ILC).

Wes Streeting Official Cabinet Portrait, July 2024 (cropped)
Wes Streeting Official Cabinet Portrait, July 2024 (cropped) Credit: Crown copyright and re-usable under the Open Government Licence v3.0, except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

What is Invasive Lobular Breast Cancer (ILC)?

Dr Susan Michaelis
Dr Susan Michaelis Credit: Fact Not Fiction Films Ltd
  • ILC is the second most common type of breast cancer in the world and is not a rare cancer with over 8,500 diagnoses annually in the UK alone.
  • ILC is a distinct disease with a different genetic, histology and biology to other breast cancers. (Batra et al., 2023)
  • ILC does not always present with recognised breast cancer symptoms and is often missed on mammograms and ultrasounds.
  • ILC is frequently diagnosed later, at a more advanced stage and has higher rates of recurrence and worse overall survival than the main type of breast cancer (Oesterreich et al. 2022)
  • ILC has not been designated a research funding priority and patients are often excluded from trials.
  • ILC has no specific treatment.
  • ILC is an unmet clinical need.

The campaign website shows that over 340 MPs have pledged their support to the project which is said to be the most bi-partisan politically supported project in the nation.

Actress and Assistant Project Manager, Tegan Muggeridge stated: “We have raised over £100,000 in the last 2 years to get the project infrastructure established and the first small research steps taken by the Manchester Breast Centre but we need the £20 million to complete the project. Over 50% of MPs have called on the Government to fund this vital research. The Government should listen to these MPs and act. It’s the will of the majority.”

Dr Michaelis, in a video uploaded to social media called on Mr Streeting to act and commented:

“£20 million needed for research equates to under £240 per person for those who will be diagnosed with lobular breast cancer in the UK in the next 10 years. This research will ultimately save lives and save the NHS millions by the use of a specific treatment for the disease, as opposed to currently treating the disease with a ‘one size fits all approach’”

The Lobular Moon Shot Project campaign will be centre stage at a drop in event in parliament on Tuesday 6th May 2025 when other MPs will be encouraged to support the campaign.