Threads of Discovery – Seeking lived experience of bowel cancer
Introduction
Research Area:
Cancer
What is the research about?
We will be hosting an in-person introductory meeting on Wednesday 22nd April for lived experience partners and researchers. Find out more below.
We want to help the body’s immune system fight cancer. Our research focuses on how the environment surrounding tumours hijacks the immune system to avoid detection and destruction, particularly in bowel cancer. By understanding how immune cells respond to mechanical and biochemical signals from the tumour, we aim to develop new therapies that can reprogramme their behaviour.
This communication is part of a project funded by UCD STEM Challenge Fund called “Threads of Discovery: Weaving Patients into Biomedical Research” driven by the Patient Voice in Health Research network in UCD Conway Institute. As part of this initiative, we are recruiting partners with a lived experience of different disease areas to collaborate with researchers within UCD Conway Institute.
We will be hosting an introductory meeting on Wednesday 22nd April for lived experience partners and researchers. This will be in person, and will be a day to get to know each other, to learn a bit about public and patient involvement (PPI), to set expectations, and to have a chat.
We hope through this initiative that long-term partnerships will be established. However, if at the end of the day you think this isn’t for you, that is absolutely fine. You won’t be locked into something you don’t want to be involved in! This is all exploratory.
Opportunity for:
Involvement Opportunity Details
Time
Time commitment:
One-hour meeting every six months.
Contact between meetings:
Occasional informal emails.
Length of involvement:
Up to 5 years
Start date for involvement:
22/04/2026
Logistics
Where?
If online, explain how:
Flexible to suit the needs of the PPI partner
If in person, explain where:
Flexible to suit the needs of the PPI partner
Other ways of communicating:
N/A
Funding available for:
If no funding available, explain why:
Not applicable
Other Information
Stage of the research study/ programme:
Research started
Is this opportunity for PPI in a PhD:
No
Closing date to contact researchers:
22/04/2026
Research Team
Contact person:
Carlos Matellan
University/organisation:
UCD Conway Institute
Contact email:
patientvoice@ucd.ie
Researcher background:
Bowel Cancer Research
Research funder:
Wellcome Trust
Photo:
Interested in this PPI Opportunity?
Please complete this form and click SUBMIT