DR CHRIS Ward might have left school without an A-level to his name.
But Chris, 34, a former police scenes-of-crime and fingerprint man, has more than made up for it.
He is leading a pioneering research project in Manchester aimed at stopping cancer in its tracks.
Using controversial stem cells from a human embryo, scientist Chris is investigating how and why those cells spread. His findings will then be related to cancer in the hope of halting the killer disease.
The research is the first of its kind in the world and the findings will be applied to the most common form of cancer - known as carcinoma - which makes up 80 to 90 per cent of all cancers.
Chris, who is based at Manchester University, said: "In most cases it is the uncontrolled spread of the cancer that kills people.
"It is very difficult to study in patients. The advantage of using embryonic stem cells is that the spreading of the cells occurs naturally and we can view the whole process in real time.
"At the end of this project, we hope to have identified molecules that either encourage or prevent the spread of cancer. Ideally we will have achieved both. It is very, very exciting and nobody else in the world is doing this."
Spending his working day in the lab is a world away from Chris's old job - scouring stolen cars or the homes of burglary victims for clues.
He worked in forensics for the Metropolitan Police in the 1990s, but decided he needed more academic stimulation than it could offer.
He went on to get a degree in applied biology and a PhD in cancer gene therapy, before working as a researcher at the Paterson Institute at Manchester's Christie Hospital. Chris moved to the university last year.
Controversy surrounds the use of embryonic stem cells and opponents claim it is morally wrong to experiment on them.
But Chris hopes his research - using cells frozen since 2000 and supplied by other scientists - will one day lead to a breakthrough in the cancer battle.
Derek Napier, chief executive of the Association for International Cancer Research, which is funding the research, said: "We hope it will lead to the design of new therapies."