Dr Adrian Dobbs and his PhD student Seble Lemma have started a new research project on a potential treatment for a terminal form of lung cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. Unusually, the project is being jointly funded by a sufferer of the disease, who – along with his running club - has raised more than £40,000. Steven Lee was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2007 and has since been raising money through marathon running. Dr Dobbs – whose own father was also a sufferer – is synthesising a naturally-occurring compound that has been suggested by Japanese scientists to kill mesothelioma cells. In an interview with the BBC, he said: “I think it's very unlikely that that we'll ever have a complete cure, but if their data are correct then it could certainly have a very powerful effect on giving longevity and a massively improved quality of life.”