The Commissioning Group

The Commissioning Group was formed to advise the Programme Director on the scientific merit and value to the NHS of research proposals submitted for funding. The Group also advises on the subsequent progress and outputs of the commissioned research.

The group is chaired by Professor Geoffrey Hanks, Department of Palliative Care at the University of Bristol, and consists of twelve members drawn from a range of disciplines and localities. To ensure continuity with the priority setting process the Chairman of the Advisory Group, Professor Peter Selby, is an observer to the Group.

Membership of the Group:

Professor Geoffrey Hanks (Chairman)
Professor of Palliative Medicine, University of Bristol

Professor Colin Bird
Dean, University of Edinburgh Medical School

Professor Nick Black
Health Services Research Unit, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Dr Ann Cull
Cancer Research UK Department of Psychological Medicine, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh

Professor Nick Day
Professor of Public Health, Institute of Public Health, University of Cambridge

Dr Muir Gray
Director, UK National Screening Committee

Mr Ian Hammond
Chief Executive, Bedfordshire & Luton Community NHS Trust

Dr Robin Hunter
Director of Clinical Oncology, Christie Hospital NHS Trust

Dr Tim Lancaster
Deputy Director, Cancer Research UK General Practice Research Group, University of Oxford

Professor Irving Taylor
Head of Surgery, UCL Medical School

Dr Chris Williams
Director, The Cochrane Cancer Network

Professor Jennifer Wilson-Barnett
Head of Department of Nursing Studies, King's College London

Professor Ciaran Woodman
Director of Epidemiology, Christie Hospital NHS Trust, Manchester


Professor Peter Selby (Observer)
Professor of Cancer Medicine, Centre for Cancer Research, University of Leeds