A new centre for cancer research at the Welsh School of Pharmacy was formally opened by the Queen on June 15.
Sponsored by a £4.7m grant from a Welsh-based cancer charity (Tenovus), the centre will focus on fundamental and applied research in breast and prostate cancer.
During her visit, the Queen talked to staff and students and met volunteers from the Tenovus and Cancer Research Wales charities before unveiling a plaque.
New laboratories have been provided for the centre, which relocated to the Welsh School of Pharmacy on the appointment of its director (Professor Robert Nicholson) to a chair in cancer pharmacology at the beginning of the year.
A statement from the school said that studies by Professor Nicholson and his 25-strong research group had implicated both steroid hormone receptor and growth factor directed pathways in the control of endocrine responses. The group had contributed to the development of tamoxifen, as well as newer medicines, such as Faslodex, Zoladex and Iressa.
Modern technologies, such as gene discovery using cDNA array and proteome mapping, were being used to highlight genes with previously unrecognised roles and which might be of significance to endocrine response failure and to other biological features of cancers, including metastatic spread, angiogenesis and immune surveillance.
Astra Zeneca contributed towards the costs of refurbishing the laboratories.
During the opening, Professor Christopher McGuigan (director of research, Welsh School of Pharmacy) highlighted the school's success in building partnerships with industry and the importance of technology transfer. Professor McGuigan described his own experience of the design and synthesis of potentially useful molecules as antiviral therapies for use in herpes, hepatitis and HIV/AIDS. A current licence agreement further to develop with Glaxo Wellcome technology discovered by Professor McGuigan and his research team is worth over £1.5m.

The Queen, accompanied by Professor David Luscombe (head of the Welsh School of Pharmacy), in discussion with Christopher McGuigan (right)