The £5,000 2023 Fergus Scholefield Cancer Research Grant has been awarded to Dr Joanna Selfe of the Institute of Cancer Research, to help fund her research project into paediatric Rhabdomyosarcoma.

"We were delighted to receive the Fergus Scholefield Cancer Research Grant of £5000 from Penguins Against Cancer in support of Dr Joanna Selfe’s project: Identifying therapeutic strategies to combat the aggressive MYOD1L122R mutation in paediatric Rhabdomyosarcoma. Our sincerest thanks to you and your fellow Trustees for your continued support."

Professor Janet Shipley and Dr Joanna Selfe from The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) are working to build on their understanding of MYOD1 mutations and how they could be targeted in the treatment of rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS).

Dr Joanna Selfe commented: “I have been working to expand our knowledge of rhabdomyosarcomas and how they can be treated for a number of years. I am dedicated to improving the outlook for young patients and having a molecular marker indicating poor prognosis in fusion negative rhabdomyosarcoma has opened the door to finding novel treatments to make this possible.

We wish Dr Selfe every success with her research and are delighted to be supporting her.