The trial is open to women who have an advanced form of either cancer and due to faults in the known cancer susceptibility genes BRCA1 or BRCA2.

They will receive a new drug, which works by knocking out a key DNA repair mechanism in cancer cells.

The trial is likely to take 18 months to complete and there are plans to extend it to centres around the UK.

Researchers are aiming to recruit 56 women and two have already signed up.

Amanda Monaghan, 36, from North Tyneside, lost her mother to cancer just months after she was diagnosed with breast cancer herself in January 2005.

The mother-of-two carries a fault in the BRCA2 gene and could benefit from the ground-breaking research in the future.

She said: "When my mum was very ill, there was nothing more the doctors could offer her. This trial means there could be an option in the future for women like me and my mum."

Mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes are responsible for around five per cent of the 44,000 cases of breast cancer diagnosed annually in the UK and for more than five per cent of the 6,615 cases of ovarian cancer diagnosed each year.

The Cancer Research UK team at Newcastle University believe their research could offer hope for the future by paving the way for the drug to be used as a preventative treatment.

Professor Herbie Newell, the charity's executive director of clinical and translational research, said: "The start of this clinical trial is a very exciting development and we look forward to seeing the results."

For information on how to take part in the trial, call (0808) 800 4040 or visit www.cancerhelp.org.uk.