The INflamation in Cancer Aetiology (INCA) working group is a collaborative effort across the University of Bristol, Imperial College London, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) which aims to understand the role of chronic inflammation in risk and progression of adult cancers. Ongoing work includes an updated GWAS meta-analysis of >200 circulating inflammatory markers and systematic appraisal of their causal role in cancer risk across 15 cancer sites in >400,000 cases and >1,000,000 controls using Mendelian randomization and related genetic epidemiological approaches. The broader aims of this work are to refine understanding of the role of inflammation in cancer biology to inform development of pharmacological interventions for the prevention and treatment of adult cancer.

There are several projects within INCA available to prospective students (suitable for PhD students or clinical academic trainees), including:

• Evaluating drug repurposing opportunities for approved anti-inflammatory medications using drug-target Mendelian randomization
• Reverse Mendelian randomization analysis to identify circulating inflammatory markers predictive of cancer
• Understanding the mediating role of inflammatory markers in the relationship between adiposity and smoking and cancer risk using multivariable Mendelian randomization
• Target trial emulation of the effect of anti-inflammatory medications on cancer risk in cohort studies with clinical record linkage
• Examining directly measured inflammatory markers in relation to cancer risk in UK Biobank

For further information on how to collaborate with INCA then please contact Dr James Yarmolinsky (james.yarmolinsky@bristol.ac.uk). 

This work is funded by Cancer Research UK.