Michael Stratton facts for kids

Sir Michael Rudolf Stratton (born 22 June 1957) is a British scientist famous for his work in understanding cancer. He was the director of the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, a world-leading research center. He is best known for leading the Cancer Genome Project and helping to discover important genes related to cancer.

Education and Early Career

Stratton went to Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School and later studied medicine at the University of Oxford. After becoming a doctor, he trained to be a histopathologist. A histopathologist is a doctor who studies tissues and cells to diagnose diseases like cancer.

He earned his PhD from the University of London in 1990. His research focused on how changes in our genes can lead to certain types of tumors. This early work set the stage for his future discoveries.

Groundbreaking Cancer Research

Sir Michael Stratton has dedicated his career to studying the genetics of cancer. He wanted to find the specific genes that, when they change or "mutate," can cause cancer to develop.

Finding the BRCA2 Gene

One of his most famous achievements came in 1995. His team found the exact location of a gene called BRCA2. This gene is very important because it helps repair damage to our DNA. When BRCA2 is faulty, it increases the risk of getting certain types of cancer, especially breast cancer. Finding this gene was a huge step forward in understanding how cancer can be passed down in families.

After this discovery, his team also found other genes that can increase the risk of cancer, such as CHEK2 and PALB2.

The Cancer Genome Project

In 2000, Stratton started the Cancer Genome Project. A genome is the complete set of DNA instructions in a living thing. The goal of this project was to read the entire genome of cancer cells to find all the mutations that cause them to grow out of control. This was a very bold idea at the time.

The project has been a great success. In 2002, his team found that a gene called BRAF was mutated in about 60% of malignant melanomas, a serious type of skin cancer. This discovery led to new medicines that target the faulty BRAF gene.

In 2009, Stratton and his team were the first to publish the complete cancer genomes from a lung tumor and a melanoma. By studying the DNA of many different tumors, they learned that cancers are much more diverse than anyone had thought. This means that what seems like one type of cancer might actually be many different diseases at the genetic level.

Leadership and Recognition

Stratton joined the Sanger Institute in 2000 and became its director in 2010. As director, he also helped lead the International Cancer Genome Consortium. This is a huge global project to sequence the genomes of 25,000 cancers from 50 different types.

In 2018, there were some disagreements at the institute where he worked. An independent review looked into the situation and found that Sir Michael had not done anything wrong. The review also suggested ways to make the workplace better for everyone.

Awards and Honors

Sir Michael Stratton's work has earned him many awards.

• He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 2008, which is one of the highest honors for a scientist in the UK.
• In 2013, he was knighted by the Queen for his services to medical science, which is why he is called Sir Michael Stratton.
• In 2024, he received the Royal Medal from the Royal Society for his important discoveries.

His nomination for the Royal Society praised him for finding important cancer genes and for starting the Cancer Genome Project. His work has changed how scientists understand, diagnose, and treat cancer.