Lydia Knott wanted to support medical research after her diagnosis (Image: Peter and Helen Knott)
Scientists have hailed a “remarkable” discovery in the fight against advanced lung cancer that could give hope to thousands of families. Researchers investigating how the disease spreads towards the end of patients’ lives found some lung tumours “seeded” further tumours which colonised other parts of the body. These newer growths undergo changes in their genetic make-up which help them survive, disseminate, and resist treatment.
The discovery was only possible thanks to patients who consented to providing samples after their deaths. Lydia Knott is one of more than 400 volunteers who have joined the PEACE study, funded by Cancer Research UK. The mother-of-two died aged 87 in April 2024. She was a passionate supporter of research and wrote to her hospital to express interest in signing up for a medical study before her diagnosis had even been confirmed.
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Speaking in 2016, Lydia said he had “no qualms” about joining PEACE. She added: “I didn’t even have to go away and think about it. I said ‘yes’ immediately.
“I understand it’s a sensitive area and not everyone is going to feel comfortable. But my view is that if it helps other people and helps to advance research into cancer treatments then it can only be a positive study.
“At the moment I’m very fit, active and mobile but if, after my death, parts of my body can be used for valuable research purposes, I’m more than happy with this.”
Lydia’s son Peter, 60, and his sister Helen, 62, fully supported her decision. Peter said: “We’re very proud of her. Our mother was a very optimistic and positive person who never stopped smiling despite her long illness. She was the sort of person who helped people.
“It wasn’t a question of: ‘Shall I? Do I have to worry about what happens after I’m dead?’ It’s just the way she was.”
Lydia, from Newtown Linford, Leicestershire, was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer in 2014 after feeling breathless. She had never smoked.
The former parish clerk died at home, surrounded by her family. Helen said: “Although she’d been chronically ill for a long time, she wasn’t seriously unwell until about the last three or four weeks of her life.
“We were there. It was all very peaceful, very calm and what she would have wanted.”
After Lydia’s death, a research autopsy was carried out before her body was returned to the family. Peter and Helen said they would both consider taking part in similar research in the future.
Helen urged others to think about it, adding: “No matter how small, they can contribute to making things better.
“It’s a bit like agreeing to organ donation. It’s not like giving your body to medical science, because the body’s going to be returned.”
Lydia’s son Peter and daughter Helen fully supported her decision (Image: Peter and Helen Knott)
The investigation into how lung cancer spreads used over 500 samples collected from 24 PEACE participants. More than half of tumours which spread were found to have spawned further tumours.
Scientists hope the findings, published in the journal Nature this week, will pave the way for treatments to buy patients precious extra time with their families. Lydia was also enrolled in a second study, TRACERX, which follows patients throughout their lives.
PEACE co-chief investigator Professor Mariam Jamal-Hanjani, a clinical scientist at UCL, said the two projects were “delivering remarkable insights into how cancer shapes our bodies”.
She described the altruism of people like Lydia as “a gift to future patients with cancer”, adding: “It was Lydia’s living wish to be part of this study, knowing that she would get nothing out of it.
“She literally gifted her body so that my team — and many teams working on lung cancer and in cancer research — will learn and benefit from what she’s done.”
Dr Catherine Elliott, director of research at Cancer Research UK, said: “This fundamental understanding of cancer, particularly in its late stages, is essential if we are to offer better treatments for more advanced forms of the disease.
“This study relies on people making the brave and selfless choice in life to donate their body to support research after they die.
“We honour Lydia, and many other people who have donated samples to this study, for their commitment to a world where other people can live longer, better lives, free from the fear of cancer.”
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
