A personalized cancer vaccine that could help prevent the illness from returning after surgery has been administered to a patient for the first time, marking a milestone for cancer treatment in the United Kingdom.
Elliot Pfebve, a bowel cancer patient, was referred to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham for chemotherapy and to take part in the clinical trial after having a 30cm tumour removed from his large intestine.
Mr Pfebve, a 55-year-old father-of-four, discovered he had the illness during a routine health check with his GP.
The higher education lecturer said: “Taking part in this trial tallies with my profession and as a community-centred person.
Thousands of other NHS cancer patients in England will be recruited to take part in vaccine trials for various forms of cancer in the coming years as part of a new scheme, officials have said.
The vaccine, created using mRNA technology and developed by biopharmaceutical companies BioNTech and Genentech, works by looking for specific mutations in a patient’s tumour, with clinicians using the information to create a personalised treatment.
The jab is designed to stimulate a patient’s immune system after surgery to remove tumours so it can recognise and attack any remaining cancer cells.
The NHS Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad (CVLP) is set to expedite access to cancer vaccine clinical trials for patients.
Through the CVLP, patients receiving treatment in NHS England can be evaluated for eligibility to join cancer vaccine clinical trials and referred to hospitals running these trials.
Leveraging the NHS’s capabilities as an innovation partner, the collaboration aims to provide up to 10,000 patients with personalized cancer treatments by 2030. (Sky News/NHS)