Background

The MRC Medicines Development Fellowship Programme builds on the success of the North West England MRC Fellowship Scheme in Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics (2010-2025), a partnership between the University of Liverpool and the University of Manchester.

The 15-year MRC funded programme has expanded clinical pharmacology training and expertise in the UK by providing research fellowships for medical professionals and strengthening the links between academia and industry to support the development of future therapeutics. 

The initial scheme (2010-2017) partnered with GSK, Astra Zeneca, ICON and Medicines Evaluation Unit, and was designed to support Clinical Fellows working in paediatrics, infectious disease or inflammation and repair, whose research had a focus on either drug safety or stratified medicine. In total 13 PhDs were awarded.

The second iteration of the programme (2016-2025) partnered with Novartis, Roche, Eli Lilly, and UCB Pharma to deliver a programme that has provided support to 15 Clinical Research Fellows with the insight and expertise to work across academia, industry and the health services. Alongside drug safety and stratified medicine this scheme expanded with a new cross cutting theme of systems pharmacology and a new theme of oncology.  

These fellows are on track to complete their PhDs by the programme's conclusion.

Key achievements and successes

Since 2010, Fellows participating on this scheme have:

• Published over 200 journal articles and 20 book chapters
• Delivered 65 conference talks and presented over 70 posters
• Received 41 prizes and honours
• Secured £5 million in research and support funding.

To date, 26 Fellows have successfully completed their PhDs, with 2 more pending. Many have since advanced to become independent researchers, making significant contributions to their fields.