2025/26 Taught Postgraduate Module Catalogue
MEDM5231M Cancer Drug Development
15 creditsClass Size: 50
Module manager: Fiona Errington-Mais
Email: F.Errington@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2025/26
Pre-requisite qualifications
As per parent programme specification.This module is not approved as an Elective
Module summary
The cancer drug development module provides an overview of current anti-cancer treatments and the challenges that exist for successful treatment. Importantly, this module explores preclinical cancer drug development pathways and the challenges associated with identifying effective anti-cancer drugs for translation these into clinical trials. This includes multiple considerations including cancer drug pharmacology and toxicology, experimental in vitro and in in vivo cancer models, cancer prevention and the design of early and late clinical trials.Objectives
This module aims to enable to students to gain:1. Knowledge in the processes behind drug development for cancer therapies
2. Understand the challenges in developing successful therapies against cancer
3. Knowledge in cancer drug pharmacology
4. An understanding of clinical trial design and interpretation, as well as a good understanding of cancer prevention strategies.
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
LO1: demonstrate advanced knowledge of preclinical drug development in cancer
LO2: formulate novel study outline to develop and test new drugs against new anti-cancer targets
LO3: identify key findings which led to the clinical use of anti-cancer drugs and critically appraise clinical trial data
LO4: critically appraise and summarise cancer drug development research
Skills Learning Outcomes
SLO1: Demonstrate proficiency using various search engines to gather relevant data and information related to biomedical research, as well as using software to analyse data and produce diagrams illustrating concepts for inclusion in written reports and oral presentations. (working, academic, digital skills)
SLO2: Demonstrate critical evaluation of literature relevant to biomedical research and the ability appraise key concepts related to experimental approaches in biomedical research. (academic skills)
SLO3: Demonstrate efficient time management in the preparation for tutorials, reading and critique of primary research papers, analysis of data, synthesising written work, generating digital presentations, and adhering to deadlines to submit the assessments. (working, academic skills)
SLO4: Demonstrate the ability to present information in a clear, concise, and structured manner, both in a verbal and written form, and the ability to use visual aids appropriately to support written work and oral presentations. (working, enterprise and academic skills)
SLO5: Demonstrate the ability to use the correct scientific language appropriate to their level of studies and good academic practice, including referencing and using their own language instead of plagiarizing. (academic skills)
Syllabus
- Review of current cancer therapies and problems of resistance to drugs
- Preclinical cancer drug development, methodology and tools
- Cancer drug pharmacology and toxicology
- Clinical trial evaluation of anti-cancer drugs
- An introduction to cancer prevention, the socio-economics of drug development and patient outcome centred research
Teaching methods
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
| Supervision | 2 | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Lecture | 12 | 1.00 | 12.00 |
| Practical | 2 | 4.00 | 8.00 |
| Seminar | 12 | 1.00 | 12.00 |
| Private study hours | 116.00 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 34.00 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 150.00 | ||
Opportunities for Formative Feedback
As formative feedback for the essay, each student is assigned a tutor and can submit an essay content page /plan of the proposed commentary related to key findings associated with an anti-cancer drug development.For the creative drug development poster design, students attend a designated session where they present their poster and receive feedback from a tutor and their peers.
Methods of assessment
Coursework
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
| Coursework | Summative - 2000-word essay | 60.00 |
| Coursework | Summative - Poster presentation (oral presentation) | 40.00 |
| Coursework | Report - Formative - Submit content page/plan for review by tutor. | 0.00 |
| Coursework | Poster - Formative - Practice poster presentation and feedback | 0.00 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100.00 | |
There is no compensation between assessments for this module, students must pass each individual assessment in order to pass the module.
Reading list
There is no reading list for this moduleLast updated: 23/01/2025
Browse Other Catalogues
- Undergraduate module catalogue
- Taught Postgraduate module catalogue
- Undergraduate programme catalogue
- Taught Postgraduate programme catalogue
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