Advanced Colorectal Cancer
Group Leader:
Dr Colin Steele
Patients die from colorectal cancer due to spread/metastasis to other organs, in particular the liver. Our team studies patient tissues accessed at the time of surgery and generates models to better understand the mechanisms underlying colorectal cancer progression in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer and liver metastases with a view to developing and assessing novel targets for therapy.
Lab Reports
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Recent Publications
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Lab Members
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Recent Publications
2026
Hillson LVS, McMahon RK, Galbraith NJ, McCulloch AK, Kong CY, Woraharn W, Melissourgou-Syka L, Pennel KAF, Quinn JA, Jones L, Amirkhah R, Fisher N, Maka N, Ammar A, Hatthakarnkul P, Tang L, Smith A, Milling S, McDonald AC, Nair H, Horgan PG, Steele CW, Graham JS, Dunne PD, Edwards J, O’Cathail SM, Roxburgh CS. Differential Immunological Effects of Short-Course and Long-Course Radiotherapy in Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2026.
2025
Cammareri P, Raponi M, Hong Y, Billard CV, Peckett N, Zhu Y, Velez-Bravo FD, Younger NT, Dunican DS, Pohl S, Bastem Akan A, Doleschall NJ, Falconer J, White M, Quinn J, Pennel K, Garau R, Malla SB, Dunne PD, Meehan RR, Sansom OJ, Edwards J, Dunlop MG, Din FVN, Tejpar S, Steele CW, Myant KB. Loss of colonic fidelity enables multilineage plasticity and metastasis. Nature. 2025.
Gould LE, Pring ET, Drami I, Constantinides J, Hodges N, Steele CW, Roxburgh CSD, Burns EM, Jenkins JT. Gluteal Flap Reconstruction Following Complex Rectal Cancer Surgery: A Large Consecutive Series of Perineal Wounds Exploring Risk Factors for Complications. J Surg Oncol. 2025;132(8):1399-1406.
Kong CY, Galbraith NJ, McCormick A, Haddock A, Ratcliffe M, Telfer J, Lo S, Fairbairn N, Palmer M, Teahan S, Morton S, Lindsay R, Burton K, Siddiqui N, Roxburgh CS, Chong PS, Steele CW, Quinn M. Resecting Beyond the Central Pelvic Compartment in Pelvic Exenterations for Gynaecological Malignancies: Outcomes From a Tertiary Unit. Aust N Z J Obstet Gynaecol. 2025.
McMahon RK, O’Cathail SM, Steele CW, Nair HS, Platt JJ, McMillan DC, Horgan PG, Roxburgh CS. Circulating Markers of Systemic Inflammation, Measured After Completion of Neoadjuvant Therapy, Associate With Response in Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer. Dis Colon Rectum. 2025.
Morgan R, Bayat Tork MA, Lin Z, Wild C, Frietze LR, Huang S, Roh M, Olivas A, Steele CW, Pan T, Shogan BD. High-fat diet driven post-operative colon cancer recurrence is dependent upon genetic susceptibility to deoxycholic acid. Cancer Lett. 2025;631:217943.
Steele CW, Roxburgh CS. Centralisation of Volume and Standardisation of Reporting, the Future of Pelvic Exenterative Surgery? Ann Surg Oncol. 2025.
2024
Fetit R, McLaren A, White M, Mills ML, Falconer J, Cortes-Lavaud X, Gilroy K, Lannagan TR, Ridgway RA, Nixon C, Naiker V, Njunge R, Clarke CJ, Whyte D, Kirschner K, Jackstadt R, Norman JC, Carlin LM, Campbell AD, Sansom OJ, Steele CW. Characterising neutrophil subtypes in cancer using scRNA sequencing demonstrates the importance of IL-1β/CXCR2 axis in generation of metastasis specific neutrophils. Cancer Res Commun. 2024.
Pennel KAF, Hatthakarnkul P, Wood CS, Lian GY, Al-Badran SSF, Quinn JA, Legrini A, Inthagard J, Alexander PG, van Wyk H, Kurniawan A, Hashmi U, Gillespie MA, Mills M, Ammar A, Hay J, Andersen D, Nixon C, Rebus S, Chang DK, Kelly C, Harkin A, Graham J, Church D, Tomlinson I, Saunders M, Iveson T, Lannagan TRM, Jackstadt R, Maka N, Horgan PG, Roxburgh CSD, Sansom OJ, McMillan DC, Steele CW, Jamieson NB, Park JH, Roseweir AK, Edwards J. JAK/STAT3 represents a therapeutic target for colorectal cancer patients with stromal-rich tumors. J Exp Clin Cancer Res. 2024;43(1):64.
Whyte D, Voorde JV, Sumpton D, Dhayade S, Dornier E, Moore M, Novo D, Peters J, Wiesheu R, Mackey JBG, McFarlane AJ, Fercoq F, Fisher S, Caballero CD, Gilroy K, Redmond KL, Mitchell LE, Anderson E, Thomson G, Dzierozynski LN, Saab JJA, Lewis CA, Muir A, Halbrook CJ, Strathdee D, Jackstadt R, Nixon C, Dunne P, Steele CW, Carlin LM, Macpherson IR, Roberts EW, Coffelt SB, Blyth K, Sansom OJ, Norman JC, Clarke CJ. Uridine Phosphorylase-1 supports metastasis of mammary cancer by altering immune and extracellular matrix landscapes of the lung. bioRxiv. 2024:2024.2007.2002.601676.
2023
Fetit R, White M, Mills ML, Cortes-Lavaud X, McLaren A, Falconer J, Gilroy K, Nixon C, Kirschner K, Jackstadt R, Campbell AD, Sansom OJ, Steele CW. Characterising neutrophil subtypes in cancer using human and murine single-cell RNA sequencing datasets. bioRxiv. 2023;Volume:2023.2007.2013.548820.
McLaren AS, Fetit R, Wood CS, Falconer J, Steele CW. Single cell sequencing of neutrophils demonstrates phenotypic heterogeneity and functional plasticity in health, disease, and cancer. Chin Clin Oncol. 2023;10.21037/cco-22-121.
McMahon RK, O’Cathail SM, Nair H, Steele CW, Platt JJ, Digby M, McDonald AC, Horgan PG, Roxburgh CSD. The neoadjuvant rectal score and a novel magnetic resonance imaging based neoadjuvant rectal score are stage independent predictors of long-term outcome in locally advanced rectal cancer. Colorectal Dis. 2023;10.1111/codi.16667.
Wood CS, Pennel KAF, Leslie H, Legrini A, Cameron AJ, Melissourgou-Syka L, Quinn JA, van Wyk HC, Hay J, Roseweir AK, Nixon C, Roxburgh CSD, McMillan DC, Biankin AV, Sansom OJ, Horgan PG, Edwards J, Steele CW, Jamieson NB. Spatially Resolved Transcriptomics Deconvolutes Prognostic Histological Subgroups in Patients with Colorectal Cancer and Synchronous Liver Metastases. Cancer Res. 2023;83:1329-1344.
2022
Pennel KA, Quinn JA, Nixon C, Inthagard J, van Wyk HC, Chang D, Rebus S, Hay J, Maka NN, Roxburgh CS, Horgan PG, McMillan DC, Park JH, Roseweir AK, Steele CW, Edwards J. CXCL8 expression is associated with advanced stage, right sidedness, and distinct histological features of colorectal cancer. J Pathol Clin Res. 2022;8:509-520.
Persson P, Chong P, Steele CW, Quinn M. Prevention and management of complications in pelvic exenteration. Eur J Surg Oncol. 2022;48:2277-2283.
Gould LE, Pring ET, Drami I, Moorghen M, Naghibi M, Jenkins JT, Steele CW, Roxburgh CS. A systematic review of the pathological determinants of outcome following resection by pelvic exenteration of locally advanced and locally recurrent rectal cancer. Int J Surg. 2022;104:106738.
2021
Han J, Tao M, Wu X, Li D, Ma Y, Dawood S, Steele CW, Tan KK, Wang Q. Reporting quality of practice guidelines on colorectal cancer: evaluation using the RIGHT reporting checklist. Ann Transl Med. 2021;9(14):1175.
Mackey JBG, McFarlane AJ, Jamieson T, Jackstadt R, Raffo-Iraolagoitia XL, Secklehner J, Cortes-Lavaud X, Fercoq F, Clarke W, Hedley A, Gilroy K, Lilla S, Vuononvirta J, Graham GJ, De Filippo K, Murphy DJ, Steele CW, Norman JC, Bird TG, Mann DA, Morton JP, Zanivan S, Sansom OJ, Carlin LM. Maturation, developmental site, and pathology dictate murine neutrophil function. bioRxiv. 2021.
Galbraith NJ, Wood C, Steele CW. Targeting Metastatic Colorectal Cancer with Immune Oncological Therapies. Cancers (Basel). 2021;13(14).
Gillespie MA, Steele CW, Lannagan TRM, Sansom OJ, Roxburgh CSD. Pre-clinical modelling of rectal cancer to develop novel radiotherapy-based treatment strategies. Oncol Rev. 2021;15:511.
McSorley ST, Steele CW, Anderson JH, McKinlay S. Comment on ‘Preoperative intravenous iron therapy and survival after colorectal cancer surgery: long-term results from the IVICA randomized controlled trial’. Colorectal Dis. 2021;23(2):555-556.
2020
Bisset CN, Carter B, Law J, Hewitt J, Parmar K, Moug SJ; ELF Study Group Collaborative Authorship. The influence of social media on recruitment to surgical trials. BMC Med Res Methodol. 2020;20:201.
Carter B, Law J, Hewitt J, Parmar KL, Boyle JM, Casey P, Maitra I, Pearce L, Moug SJ; ELF Study Group. Association between preadmission frailty and care level at discharge in older adults undergoing emergency laparotomy. Br J Surg. 2020;107:218-226.
CRC COVID Research Collaborative. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on colorectal cancer service provision. Br J Surg. 2020;107:e521–e522.
McSorley ST, Anderson JH, Whittle T, Roxburgh CS, Horgan PG, McMillan DC, Steele CW. The impact of preoperative systemic inflammation on the efficacy of intravenous iron infusion to correct anaemia prior to surgery for colorectal cancer. Perioperative Med 2020;9:17.
McSorley ST, Tham A, Dolan RD, Steele CW, Ramsingh J, Roxburgh C, Horgan PG, McMillan DC. Perioperative Blood Transfusion is Associated with Postoperative Systemic Inflammatory Response and Poorer Outcomes Following Surgery for Colorectal Cancer. Ann Surg Oncol. 2020 Mar;27(3):833-843.
2019
Steele CW, Whittle T, Smith JJ. Review: KRAS mutations are influential in driving hepatic metastases and predicting outcome in colorectal cancer. Chin Clin Oncol. 2019 Oct;8(5):53.
Golder AM, Steele CW, Conn D, MacKay GJ, McMillan DC, Horgan PG, Roxburgh CS, McSorley ST. Effect of preoperative oral antibiotics in combination with mechanical bowel preparation on inflammatory response and short-term outcomes following left-sided colonic and rectal resections. BJS Open. 2019;3:830-839.
Jackstadt R, van Hooff SR, Leach JD, Cortes-Lavaud X, Lohuis JO, Ridgway RA, Wouters VM, Roper J, Kendall TJ, Roxburgh CS, Horgan PG, Nixon C, Nourse C, Gunzer M, Clark W, Hedley A, Yilmaz OH, Rashid M, Bailey P, Biankin AV, Campbell AD, Adams DJ, Barry ST, Steele CW, Medema JP, Sansom OJ. Epithelial NOTCH Signaling Rewires the Tumor Microenvironment of Colorectal Cancer to Drive Poor-Prognosis Subtypes and Metastasis. Cancer Cell. 2019;36:319-336.e7.
McSorley S, Johnstone M, Steele CW, Roxburgh CSD, McMillan D, Horgan P, Mansouri D. Normocytic anaemia is associated with systemic inflammation and poorer survival in patients with colorectal cancer treated with curative intent. International Journal of Colorectal Disease 2019;34:401-408.
McSorley S, Tham A, Steele CW, Dolan R, Horgan P, McMillan D. Quantitative data on red cell measures of iron status and their relation to the magnitude of the systemic inflammatory response and survival in patients with colorectal cancer. EJSO 2019 Feb 27. pii: S0748-7983(19)30300-2.
Parmar KL, Law J, Carter B, Hewitt J, Boyle JM, Casey P, Maitra I, Farrell IS, Pearce L, Moug SJ; ELF Study Group. Frailty in Older Patients Undergoing Emergency Laparotomy: Results From the UK Observational Emergency Laparotomy and Frailty (ELF) Study. Ann Surg. 2019;273:709-718.
Reader CS, Vallath S, Steele CW, Haider S, Brentnall A, Desai A, Moore KM, Jamieson NB, Chang D, Bailey P, Scarpa A, Lawlor R, Chelala C, Keyse SM, Biankin A, Morton JP, Evans TRJ, Barry ST, Sansom OJ, Kocher HM, Marshall JF. The integrin αvβ6 drives pancreatic cancer through diverse mechanisms and represents an effective target for therapy. J Pathol. 2019;249:332-342.
2018
McSorley S, Steele CW, McMahon A. Meta-analysis of oral antibiotics in combination with mechanical bowel preparation the day before surgery to reduce surgical site infections in elective colorectal surgery. BJS (Open) 2018;2:185-194.
Senior Scientific Officer
John Falconer
I joined The Steele Lab Group in The CRUK Scotland Institute as a Senior Scientific Officer in 2021. During that time, I have mostly been focusing on the effects of diet and targeted radiotherapy on colorectal cancer outcome. Prior to this appointment, I was involved with research on adaptive immune cell interaction in the context of demyelinating diseases. In my free time I enjoy lawn care, rail timetable compilation and Formula 1.
Senior Scientific Officer
Athina Varnava
My name is Athina Varnava, originally from Cyprus, and I am a Senior Scientific Officer in Colin Steele’s lab, which I joined in June 2025. Before joining the CRUK Scotland Institute, I completed my PhD at the University of Glasgow where I studied the mechanism of action of an SSRI in chronic myeloid leukaemia. My current research interest is characterising the contribution of neutrophils in the progression of colorectal cancer, specifically in liver metastasis, and whether this can be manipulated to improve outcome of the disease. Outside the lab, I enjoy playing water polo, watching football, experimenting with recipes and exploring different parts of the world.
Clinical Research Fellow
Alastair McLaren
I am a TRACC Clinical Research Fellow currently taking a pause in training in Medical Oncology to pursue a PhD. My interests lie in cancer resistance to immunotherapy, and my PhD focuses on the role of neutrophils in the immune microenvironment of advanced colorectal cancer, particularly in liver metastases, and whether neutrophils can be manipulated to play a positive “anti-tumour” role. Outside of research I enjoy travel, food and watching and playing a variety of sports.
Clinical Research Fellow
Fraser Cullen*
Information about this team member’s research interests, experience, and background will be added soon. Please check back for updates.
Clinical Research Fellow
Alison Wallace*
Information about this team member’s research interests, experience, and background will be added soon. Please check back for updates.
Clinical Research Fellow
Peter Ishak*
Information about this team member’s research interests, experience, and background will be added soon. Please check back for updates.
PhD Student
Meilinda Lesmana
I joined the Steele’s lab as a PhD student in October 2025. My research project focuses on the effects of diet and obesity on colorectal cancer, particularly its effect on accelerating the development of liver metastasis. In this project, I am also developing a novel method for tracking metabolic changes using deuterated water to observe how they affect the immune microenvironment. Outside of research, I enjoy going on hikes, crocheting and occasionally writing fictional stories.
MB-PhD Student
Yujia Zhu*
Information about this team member’s research interests, experience, and background will be added soon. Please check back for updates.