Privacy policy

The International Alliance for Cancer Early Detection (ACED) is an international alliance that brings together leading research organisations to accelerate progress in cancer early detection.

ACED members are Cancer Research UK, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, The University of Manchester, the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), University College London, Knight Cancer Institute at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), and the University of Cambridge.

ACED is not a separate legal entity. Cancer Research UK provides, hosts and administers the ACED website, www.acedcancer.com, and is responsible for the operation of the website and related ACED communications and administrative activities. When you use the ACED website or otherwise provide information to us in connection with ACED activities, Cancer Research UK is the data controller of your personal information for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy.

In this Privacy Policy:

"ACED", "we", "us" and "our" means Cancer Research UK acting on behalf of ACED.

Cancer Research UK is a company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales (No. 4325234) and a registered charity in England and Wales (No. 1089464), Scotland (No. SC041666) and the Isle of Man (No. 1103). Registered address: Cancer Research UK, 2 Redman Place, London, E20 1JQ

"You" and "your" means any individual who accesses the ACED website or engages with ACED activities.

Where you participate in research studies, funding programmes or activities administered by another ACED member institution, that organisation may act as a separate data controller and provide you with its own privacy information where required.

We collect information in the following ways:

Information you provide directly

You may provide information to us when you:

• contact us through our website or email;

• submit an expression of interest;

• apply for funding, training opportunities or awards;

• register for events or webinars;

• subscribe to receive updates;

• engage with us regarding research collaborations, partnerships or investment opportunities; or

• otherwise communicate with us.

Information collected when you visit our website

When you visit our website, we may automatically collect information about your device and usage of the website through cookies and similar technologies.

This may include:

• IP address;

• device identifiers;

• browser type and version;

• operating system;

• referring websites;

• pages viewed;

• date and time of access; and

• website usage information.

Further information can be found in our Cookie Policy.

Information provided by third parties

We may receive information about you from:

• ACED member institutions;

• principal investigators and host organisations;

• suppliers and service providers acting on our behalf;

• publicly available sources, including institutional websites; and

• analytics, advertising and search providers.

• if you are a researcher and your information is shared with us by the principal investigator or institution.

Depending on your relationship with ACED, we may collect:

• name;

• job title;

• organisation or institution;

• your contact details (including your postal address, telephone number and email address);

• details relating to funding applications, collaborations or research activities;

• records of communications and correspondence with us;

• event registration and attendance information;

• demographic information where relevant to funding, equality monitoring or research activities;

• website and device usage information;

• IP address and location information; and

• any other personal information you choose to provide.

In limited circumstances, we may collect special category personal information, such as information relating to health, where this is necessary for a specific activity and there is an appropriate legal basis for doing so.

We will use your personal information to:

1. Provide you with information, services and support that you request from us.

2. Respond to enquiries, requests, feedback, complaints and other communications.

3. Manage and administer expressions of interest, funding applications, research proposals, grants, awards, training programmes, events, webinars, meetings and other ACED activities.

4. Communicate with researchers, applicants, partners, stakeholders and other individuals involved in ACED activities, including sending administrative and operational communications.

5. Maintain records of your relationship and interactions with ACED, Cancer Research UK and participating ACED member organisations.

6. Facilitate collaboration, research, funding, governance and partnership activities across the ACED network.

7. Monitor, evaluate and improve our activities, services, events, communications and website through analysis, reporting, research, surveys and quality assurance activities.

8. Administer, maintain, test, troubleshoot, personalise and secure our websites, online platforms, technical systems and IT infrastructure.

9. Monitor website usage, traffic and performance, including identifying trends, understanding visitor engagement and protecting our systems from misuse.

10. Keep our records accurate and up to date, including verifying and updating contact details from appropriate third-party and publicly available sources.

11. Administer finances, grants and awards, including monitoring the appropriate use of funding and maintaining financial and operational records.

12. Undertake due diligence, ethical screening, fraud prevention and other risk management activities.

13. Protect the safety, wellbeing, dignity and security of research participants, staff, volunteers and other individuals involved in ACED activities.

14. Comply with legal, regulatory, contractual and governance requirements, including responding to regulators, government bodies and law enforcement agencies where required.

15. Establish, exercise or defend legal rights and claims.

16. Support the research, educational and collaborative objectives of ACED and the charitable purposes of Cancer Research UK.

Our marketing communications may include information about ACED funding opportunities, research developments, training initiatives, events, partnerships and other activities relevant to cancer early detection.

We operate an opt-in marketing approach and will only send marketing communications where we have an appropriate legal basis to do so, usually your consent. We may occasionally include information about relevant opportunities from ACED member organisations or other organisations that support ACED activities.

We recognise that preferences can change over time. We will therefore review marketing consent periodically and may stop sending marketing communications where consent has not been refreshed within an appropriate timeframe. You can withdraw your consent or update your communication preferences at any time by contacting aced@cancer.org.uk.

We may use information we hold about you, such as your relationship with ACED, your institution, location, areas of interest and previous involvement in ACED activities, to make our communications more relevant to you.

Where you request information about, register for, or participate in an ACED event, we will send communications necessary to administer and deliver the event. These communications are not considered marketing and may include:

• registration confirmations;

• joining instructions;

• event updates;

• post-event information; and

• information about future ACED events or similar activities where permitted by law and unless you have opted out of receiving such communications.

We want you to be in control of how we communicate with you. Our forms include clear options for managing your communication preferences, and our marketing communications explain how you can opt out or update your preferences at any time.

You can change your communication preferences or withdraw your consent to receive marketing communications by contacting us at aced@cancer.org.uk.

If you choose not to receive marketing communications, we may still contact you where necessary for administrative, operational or service-related purposes. This may include communications relating to funding applications, expressions of interest, events you have registered for, research or partnership activities, updates to our policies or terms, or other information required to administer your relationship with ACED.

Data protection law requires us to have a lawful basis for processing personal information.

Depending on the activity, we rely on one or more of the following lawful bases:

Consent

Where you have given us consent to use your information, such as for certain marketing communications.

You may withdraw your consent at any time.

Performance of a contract

Where processing is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you or your organisation.

Legal obligation

Where processing is necessary to comply with legal or regulatory requirements.

Vital interests

Where processing is necessary to protect someone's life, health or safety.

Legitimate interests

Where processing is necessary for our legitimate interests or those of a third party and those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms.

Examples include:

• administering ACED activities;

• responding to enquiries;

• maintaining records;

• managing relationships with partners and researchers;

• improving the website and services;

• ensuring effective governance; and

• preventing fraud and misuse of our systems.

Special category information: Where we process special category personal data, we will rely on an additional condition under applicable data protection law, such as:

• your explicit consent;

• substantial public interest;

• scientific or research purposes; or

• another lawful condition permitted by law.

We have appropriate technical and organisational measures in place to protect personal information against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, disclosure or alteration.

These measures include:

• access controls;

• encryption where appropriate;

• network security monitoring;

• staff training;

• contractual safeguards with suppliers; and

• regular review of security arrangements.

Although we take reasonable steps to protect personal information, no transmission or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

Because ACED is an international collaboration, personal information may be transferred outside the United Kingdom.

Where personal information is transferred internationally, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with UK data protection law.

These safeguards may include:

• transfers to countries recognised as providing an adequate level of protection;

• use of the UK International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA);

• use of the UK Addendum to Standard Contractual Clauses; or

• another lawful transfer mechanism permitted under applicable law.

We retain personal information only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected.

When determining retention periods, we consider:

• legal and regulatory requirements;

• contractual obligations;

• operational needs;

• the sensitivity of the information;

• potential legal claims; and

• guidance from relevant authorities.

When information is no longer required, it will be securely deleted or anonymised.

We do not sell or rent your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.

We may share your personal information with organisations that are part of ACED, and with other organisations we work with, where this is necessary to administer ACED activities, assess applications, support collaborative research projects, respond to enquiries, undertake due diligence, or manage grants, awards, partnerships and other ACED initiatives.

We may share your information with the following categories of organisations:

• ACED member institutions and collaborators;

• research partners and joint funders;

• host institutions;

• scientific advisory panels, peer reviewers and external committee members;

• suppliers, service providers and subcontractors who process information on our behalf, including providers of:

  • website hosting;

  • cloud storage;

  • IT support;

  • event management services;

  • communications services; and

  • analytics services;

• advertising networks, analytics providers and search engine providers;

• auditors, regulators and professional advisers, including legal advisers; and

• law enforcement agencies and other public authorities where required by law.

Where third parties process personal information on our behalf, they are only permitted to do so in accordance with our instructions and appropriate contractual safeguards.

We may also disclose personal information where necessary to:

• comply with legal, regulatory or contractual obligations;

• protect our rights, property, safety or security, or those of our staff, participants, users, partners or other individuals;

• prevent or detect fraud or other unlawful activity; or

• establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

If Cancer Research UK or any relevant part of its operations undergoes a reorganisation, merger, acquisition or transfer of assets, personal information may be shared with prospective or actual counterparties and their advisers as part of that process, subject to appropriate confidentiality and security protections.

We may use information from publicly available sources, such as university, institutional or business websites, where appropriate, to help keep our records accurate and up to date. This may include identifying changes to your contact details so that we can continue to communicate with you about ACED activities, respond to enquiries, administer applications, provide important updates, or contact you where you have chosen to receive communications from us.

Keeping our records up to date also helps us avoid duplicate records and ensure that your communication preferences are respected. We only use information from sources where we believe the information has been made available appropriately and lawfully.

We are committed to giving you control over your personal information, and you may object to this activity or update your preferences at any time by contacting aced@cancer.org.uk.

We would also appreciate it if you let us know when your contact details change so that we can keep our records accurate.

Under UK data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal information. These include the right to:

• Request access

  to the personal information we hold about you.

• Request correction

  of inaccurate or incomplete personal information.

• Request erasure

  of your personal information in certain circumstances.

• Request restriction

  of the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances.

• Object

  to the processing of your personal information where we rely on legitimate interests or process information for direct marketing purposes.

• Request the transfer

  of your personal information to you or another organisation, where applicable.

• Withdraw your consent

  at any time where we rely on consent as our legal basis for processing.

• Lodge a complaint

  with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) if you believe your personal information has been handled unlawfully.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact dataprotection@cancer.org.uk and aced@cancer.org.uk.

We may ask you to provide proof of identity before responding to your request. We will respond in accordance with applicable data protection laws.

For more information about your rights, please visit the Information Commissioner's Office website: https://ico.org.uk/your-data-matters/.

We do not make decisions based solely on automated processing that produce legal or similarly significant effects on individuals.

The ACED website and services are primarily intended for researchers, professional collaborators, funding applicants and other adult stakeholders.

We do not knowingly collect personal information from children unless appropriate consent or another lawful basis applies.

If you have concerns about how we use your personal information, please contact us first at dataprotection@cancer.org.uk and aced@cancer.org.uk.

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, SK9 5AF, Website: https://ico.org.uk, Telephone: 0303 123 1113

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time.

Any significant changes will be made available on the ACED website and, where appropriate, notified directly to affected individuals.

Last updated: 24 August 2026

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how your personal information is handled, please contact:

ACED

Email: aced@cancer.org.uk

Data Protection Officer

Cancer Research UK, 2 Redman Place, London, E20 1JQ

Email: dataprotection@cancer.org.uk