Landmark £450,000 grant could slash use of mice in leukaemia research
A landmark £450,000 research grant could transform the way scientists study leukaemia and reduce the number of mice used in research by up to 80 per cent.
The funding will enable Dr Minerva Bosch-Fortea, of Barts Cancer Institute, to develop a pioneering, completely animal-free model of the environment inside bone marrow where leukaemia cells develop.
The grant, announced to mark World Leukaemia Day on September 4, is being funded by The Humane Research Trust with support from Naturewatch Foundation.
Around 9,900 people are diagnosed with leukaemia in the UK each year, equivalent to approximately 27 new cases every day.
Although treatments have advanced, resistance remains a major challenge for scientists and patients.
Dr Bosch-Fortea’s research will use human-based approaches to recreate the complex bone marrow environment in which leukaemia develops.
It is hoped the model will help researchers understand why the disease progresses and why some treatments stop working, while dramatically reducing the use of animals.
The project could cut the number of mice used in this type of research by up to 80 per cent. Within Dr Bosch-Fortea’s work alone, 400 mice a year will no longer be used.
Dr Bosch-Fortea said: “By creating a fully human and animal-free model of the bone-marrow microenvironment, we hope to better understand how leukaemia progresses and why treatments fail, while demonstrating that more predictive and ethical approaches to cancer research are possible.”
The fellowship comes as momentum grows within UK science to move away from animal testing and towards research methods designed to be more relevant to human biology.
Official figures show that 2.54 million scientific procedures were carried out on animals in Great Britain in 2025.
The UK Government has also recently announced new projects aimed at moving science away from animal testing and towards innovative approaches that could help patients access medicines faster.
Supporters of animal-free research say non-animal replacement methods have the potential to provide more reliable, human-specific results and advance human health without using animals.
The £450,000 award is the largest grant made by The Humane Research Trust to date.
Alison Giles, chief executive officer at The Humane Research Trust, said: “This is the largest grant we have awarded to date, and it reflects our ambition to support transformative research that replaces animal use. We are delighted to be working alongside Naturewatch Foundation on this important initiative.”
The partnership between the two charities aims to demonstrate how animal-free science can benefit both patients and animals.
It will also offer supporters of the charities and the wider public an opportunity to help advance frontline scientific research.
Laura Lendrum, campaign manager at Naturewatch Foundation, said: “Naturewatch Foundation is proud to support the Humane Research Fellowship and this exciting new approach to leukaemia research.
“There is a real opportunity to use human-relevant science to deliver better outcomes for patients while also importantly avoiding the need for animals in research.”
Barts Cancer Institute is part of Queen Mary University of London and brings together scientists and clinicians working to understand cancer and develop better ways to prevent, diagnose and treat the disease. It is also a partner in the Cancer Research UK City of London Centre.
