Update on 'essential' HA Andrews Memorial Fund project

Updated: 10 Apr 2024

The recipients of the HA Andrews Memorial Fund have described the honour they feel and explained how the Oddfellows’ backing is fundamental to what they do.

Nur (right) took to the stage at the Society's annual conference to discuss her PhD studies

Addressing the Oddfellows

Nur Zainal is a PhD student at the University of Southampton whose studies are being sponsored by the Oddfellows' HA Andrews Memorial Fund. She updated those present at the Society's annual conference in Eastbourne last month on her progress.

The Centre for Cancer Immunology, where Nur is based, received £100,000 in 2022, split over three years. Her work is looking into a specific gene which it is believed can be manipulated to target cancer cells in a new vaccine. If successful, this could profoundly change outcomes for patients with cancer, particularly lung, breast, head and neck oesophageal and bladder cancers.

In the first of three years of the project, the focus has been teaching Nur the techniques and skills she’ll need going forward. These include computational analysis, learning how to grow cancer cells in the lab, and techniques on how to measure the activated immune cells.

“We haven’t generated a lot of data yet, but we are trying to make sure that we have the right tools come October – that’s when the real works starts,” Nur explained.

This funding is essential.

Nur added: “Without funding we can’t really do our work.

“We really want to do something that is translatable to the clinic. Our overarching aim is to understand whether we can design a vaccine so that we can treat cancer patients. To achieve that we need to do specific tasks and those tasks require a lot of money, so this funding is essential.

Nur Zainal addressing the conference

“I am really honoured to be funded by the Oddfellows.”

Investing in the future

Nur was joined in Eastbourne by Professor Edd James, who is leading the research alongside Dr Tim Felton.

Edd explained that, so far, the funding has not only prepared Nur for her upcoming research, but it allowed the centre to identify and nurture her talents in the first place.

“The idea is to be able to, on two fronts, be able to have the money to identify an excellent candidate who we know is going to do great things in the future, but to also have that environment that will allow that person to thrive into the leader that we see that they can be,” Edd said.

(L to R) Professor Edd James, Oddfellows CEO Jane Nelson, Nur Zainal, and outgoing Chairman of the Oddfellows David Ogden

“Without the funding we wouldn’t have that and that person would be lost to the world of science, perhaps, but at least to the fundamental part of research that we do.

“The other side of things is the actual research that we’re doing. Over the past few years we’ve seen a shrink in the pots of money that are available to do this early-stage fundamental research to identify what could be incredibly exciting new therapies.

“Funding is shrinking and shrinking, so the nice thing about the Oddfellows’ ability to have this funding means that we can do those projects.

“This could be a step to then going into clinical trials and getting much bigger sources of funding to then take what Nur identifies and finds out during her PhD to patients and into the clinic in the future.”

HA Andrews

HA Andrews

The HA Andrews Memorial Fund was set up in 1971 and is named after Herbert Arthur Andrews. Professionally a Barrister, he served as an Oddfellows Secretary for over 30 years.

He played a pivotal role in the Government’s formation of the National Insurance Scheme and was honoured with an OBE in 1946 by King George VI for services to his country.

The Fund

The Fund’s focus is on providing financial support over a two or three year period to a UK project or organisation involved in, or conducting, medical research. The research must focus on improving society’s understanding, diagnosis, or cures for diseases, mental and physical disorders, or any other conditions which adversely affect the quality of human life.

David Ogden and Jane Nelson presented Nur and the Centre for Cancer Immunology a cheque for £33,000 last year

In his name, the Oddfellows’ major charitable fund has donated £1,214,000 to medical research projects to date. This is all thanks to the generosity of individuals and our Branches.

The Fund was originally set up courtesy of an initial donation from his estate. If you’d like to donate to the Fund to help essential projects like that happening at the Centre for Cancer Immunology to operate, you can send cheques, made payable to 'The Oddfellows', to the HA Andrews Memorial Fund c/o The Oddfellows, Oddfellows House, 184-186 Deansgate, Manchester M3 3WB.

Thank you for any support you can give.

Learn more about the HA Andrews Memorial Fund here.