Tricia McCarthy Memorial Scholarship

Tricia McCarthy Memorial Scholarship

The many fundraising initiatives by House of Fraser in support of the National Breast Cancer Research Institute (NBCRI) in recent months have lead to the formation of a new scholarship at the Institute, ‘The Tricia McCarthy Memorial Scholarship’. Over the last eighteen months House of Fraser raised an incredible €25,000 for the breast cancer charity at their Dundrum store. The Scholarship is named after Tricia McCarthy, sister of well-known beauty writer Triona McCarthy who has become a champion for NBCRI since her sister was diagnosed with the disease in 2007.

The first recipient of the Scholarship is Dr. Ailbhe McDermott. Dr McDermott graduated from NUI Galway with an honours degree (MB BCh BAO) in 2009. Ailbhe is currently undertaking a PhD on the Molecular Mechanisms of Breast Cancer Development concentrating on microRNAs. She will complete a higher degree before resuming clinical training to pursue a career in breast cancer surgery.

MicroRNAs are tiny proteins that can be detected in the blood and tumours of women with breast cancer. Their discovery has major implications for breast cancer management. MicroRNAs have the potential to be used as a biomarker or detector for breast cancer, and may allow us the ability to diagnose this disease from a simple blood test. These biomarkers can also be used for new treatment strategies. This is an exciting time in cancer research with new discoveries which will hopefully have a positive impact on women diagnosed with breast cancer worldwide.

Professor Michael Kerin, Research Director, NBCRI said “This is an enormously generous contribution from the House of Fraser and we are especially grateful to Triona who has been a great support of NBCRI over the past number of years. Our research work requires ongoing input from voluntary sources and this particular grant will support a very bright student who has already made a great contribution to breast cancer research. MicroRNAs hold enormous potential and we are currently engaged in several clinical trials assessing their overall application to the individualisation of breast cancer therapy”.