Romsey professor leading research into cancer treatments

The Southampton Clinical Trials Unit, based at the University of Southampton, has been chosen to run a new NHS England programme accelerating research.

The Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad (CVLP) aims to improve patient access to clinical trials which test new immunotherapies by speeding the development of personalised cancer vaccines.
It’s hoped thousands of patients across England will be recruited to these trials, with University Hospital Southampton one of the first to open to the programme.

Prof Gareth Griffiths, director of the Cancer Research UK Southampton Clinical Trial Unit, who is from Romsey, said: “Cancer vaccines have the potential to improve the way we treat the disease, particularly for those cancers where treatment options are currently limited or very demanding on patients’ bodies.

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“Although there have been some trials of cancer vaccines in the past, there are a new generation of vaccines that that are personalised to individual biological features of a patient’s disease. We are delighted to have been chosen to run the national platform which will bring together a number of vaccine trials so that patients can access these trials more easily, improving our research knowledge and hopefully leading to improved treatment outcomes for patients.”

Dr Victoria Goss, head of early diagnosis and translational research at the Southampton Clinical Trials Unit, said: “Patients with early or late-stage cancer who are receiving cancer treatment on the NHS will be able to have tumour samples sent to the laboratories for analysis.

“If their cancer contains mutations that may be suitable for use in a personalised cancer vaccine, then they may be eligible to enter screening for one of the vaccine trials.”

She added: “This initial trial is only for patients with a particular type of colorectal cancer, as that is what the vaccine is targeting. But as the programme expands, more vaccines targeting other cancer types will be brought on board, giving more patients the opportunity to take part.”

Prof Griffiths added: “Research and clinical trials are essential for improving how we treat cancer and helping to improve outcomes for patients. By bringing together the most innovative immunotherapies and personalised treatment trials through the Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad we hope to facilitate more patient access to these clinical trials and ultimately accelerate the progress in cancer treatments.”