Glasgow scientists have received a £500,000 grant from a leading men's health charity to develop a brand new type of prostate cancer drug. 

The grant was awarded to the University of Strathclyde as part of Prostate Cancer UK's Research Innovation Awards scheme. 

New figures have shown that a record of 12,000 men have died from prostate cancer in one single year in the UK, highlighting the need for new research to help diagnose and treat the diesase. 

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Led by Professor Simon Mackay, the study is aiming to develop a revolutionary drug and bring it a step closer to clinical trials. 

Professor Mackay has spent the past decade developing a chemical which could target a completely different protein in the cancer cell to other treatments. 

If successful, this new drug has the potential to not only stop the cancer from growing, but also increase the effectiveness of other existing treatments.

Professor Mackay said: “Many existing drugs for men with advanced prostate cancer work in the same way.

"Although they can be very effective, men are left with few options once their cancer becomes resistant to these drugs.

“That’s why I was so excited when I came across studies which showed that men with aggressive prostate cancer had higher levels of a protein called IKK alpha.

"I realised that if we could attack this protein, we could stop prostate cancer from growing and also help men respond to treatments for longer without becoming resistant.

“After years of research and negotiating many hurdles, we now believe we’ve found the chemical that can do this, but we need to do more research to find the best way for this drug to be delivered to men. 

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"Thanks to the funding from Prostate Cancer UK, we now have the chance to bring this treatment one step closer to clinical trials.

"After all this time, I’d be over the moon if I could make that difference to men affected by prostate cancer.”

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men and the disease kills one man every 45 minutes in the UK.