‘For 30 years I’ve been obsessed by why children get leukaemia. Now we have an answer’

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‘For 30 years I’ve been obsessed by why children get leukaemia. Now we have an answer’ - The Guardian

Newly knighted cancer scientist Mel Greaves explains why a cocktail of microbes could give protection against disease

Mel Greaves has a simple goal in life. He is trying to create a yoghurt-like drink that would stop children from developing leukaemia.

The idea might seem eccentric; cancers are not usually defeated so simply. However, Professor Greaves is confident and, given his experience in the field, his ideas are being taken seriously by other cancer researchers.

Based at the Institute of Cancer Research in London, Greaves has been studying childhood leukaemia for three decades. On Friday, it was announced that he had received a knighthood in the New Year honours list for the research he has carried out in the field.

“For 30 years I have been obsessed about the reasons why children get leukaemia,” he says. “Now, for the first time, we have an answer to that question – and that means that we can now start thinking about ways to halt it in its tracks. Hence my idea of the drink.”
 
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