Clatterbridge opens pioneering cancer vaccine trial to patients

Clatterbridge patients will soon be able to join a pioneering cancer vaccine clinical research trial aimed at finding a ground-breaking treatment for the most common form of lung cancer.

Patients with Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) who qualify will be offered the chance to join the study after a partnership was announced with biopharmaceutical company myNEO Therapeutics and the University of Liverpool (UoL).

myNEO Therapeutics will use its advanced technology to find specific cancer targets in each patient, enabling the creation of a personalised vaccine tailored to each person’s unique tumour profile.

The process combines state-of-the-art AI algorithms, genomics, and bioinformatics to analyse mutations in the tumours and find the best place to target the therapy, which is designed to activate the patient’s immune system and attack the cancer cells while minimising the risk of side effects.

Ten patients with NSCLC, the most common form of lung cancer, will be recruited to the NEOVACC study, which will be based at The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre (CCC) and UoL.

Professor Christian Ottensmeier, CCC’s Director of Clinical Research and Professor of Immuno-Oncology at UoL said:

“Our collaboration with myNEO Therapeutics exemplifies our commitment to pioneering personalised medicine in oncology, Their expertise in neoantigen prediction is vital to the development of a therapeutic vaccine that could significantly impact patient outcomes.”

CCC is one of the country’s leading NHS cancer research centres and already conducts more than a dozen cancer vaccine trials, including in lung cancer, of which there is a much higher incidence in Merseyside than in most of the UK.

Dr Gillian Heap, CCC’s Director of Research and Innovation Operations, said:

“It is fantastic news that we are partnering in this new cancer vaccine clinical trial. It adds to a suite of similar studies at Clatterbridge which are giving our patients who join them real hope of a positive outcome for their treatment.

“Professor Ottensmeier is a world authority on cancer vaccines, a hugely exciting area of cancer research that could bring game-changing results, and this new study represents another significant step forward in the development of individualised cancer immunotherapies.”