RESEARCHERS from the University of Southampton hope to develop a new drug to combat prostate cancer after being awarded £113,000.

They were one of 17 institutions to receive a grant from Prostate Cancer UK which has pledged to find answers to some the most important research challenges facing the disease today.

The charity is injecting a colossal £11 million into research this year to focus on understanding the risk of the disease and improving diagnosis and treatment options for men living with it.

The grants were awarded via a competitive process, and the projects were chosen because of their extremely high quality and relevance to men with prostate cancer.

Dr Simon Crabb who is leading the project at the University's Cancer Sciences Unit said: “We plan to use this generous grant from Prostate Cancer UK to explore the possibility of an entirely new drug to target hormone activity in the tumour which could both act more effectively, and work alongside, what is currently available.

“This will lead us closer to our ultimate aim for the future which is to allow men to control their prostate cancer in this way for a longer period.”