NHS patients to receive personalised bowel cancer vaccines

The first patient in England to receive a personalised bowel cancer vaccine has been treated in a Birmingham hospital.

Elliot Pfebve, a colorectal cancer patient, is the first patient in England to has received a vaccine for cancer as part of a clinical trial. The vaccine trial aims to establish a treatment that can provide a permanent cure for people following a cancer diagnosis, by tailoring the vaccine to the individual patient's tumour genetics.

Dr Victoria Kunene, principal investigator for the clinical trial, said: 'Based on the limited data we currently have of the in-body response to the vaccine, this could prove to be a significant and positive development for patients, but more data is yet needed'.

In tandem, the Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad scheme has been set up to help identify eligible patients for cancer vaccine trials from hospitals across England. This collaboration between pharmaceutical company BioNTech and UK government builds upon previous experience of delivering rapid COVID-19 vaccines to reduce the time needed to carry out vaccine research. The scheme aims to treat 10,000 patients with personalised cancer vaccines by 2030.

Cancer vaccines are developed by identifying specific mutations in the tumour cells of the patient. This information is used to develop a personalised vaccine containing genetic information specific to the patient's tumour. An mRNA vaccine is then produced, triggering the immune system to accurately identify and destroy cancer cells and reduce the risk of the cancer returning.

NHS national clinical director for cancer Professor Peter Johnson, said: 'We know that even after a successful operation, cancers can sometimes return because a few cancer cells are left in the body, but using a vaccine to target those remaining cells may be a way to stop this happening.'

Vaccine trials are currently underway in several major cancer types, including breast, lung and ovarian cancer. Future research will involve expanding vaccine trials to more cancer types, with the aim to establish 'standard of care' treatments that become best practice in treating cancer. The Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad aims to help identify eligible trial candidates such as Pfebve, as well as delivering future cancer vaccine research.