The Freeman Hospital in Newcastle has recruited the first patient in the UK to a worldwide blood cancer trial.
The trial is testing a type of drug that could be a potential non-chemotherapy-based first-line treatment for follicular lymphoma.
Follicular lymphoma is a cancer of the lymphatic system. It affects white blood cells called B-cells, which help the body fight infection. Symptoms can include painless swelling in the neck, armpit or groin, high temperatures, night sweats, and weight loss.
In the UK, the current first treatment is chemotherapy, which can have significant side effects for patients. The study is investigating whether a certain type of drug can be used as an alternative to chemotherapy.
The drug has two ‘arms’, one which attaches to the lymphoma cell and the other to the patient’s own white blood cell, a T cell. By bringing the patient’s own immune system into contact with the lymphoma cell it causes immune activation and death of the lymphoma cell.
Dr Wendy Osborne, consultant haematologist at the Freeman Hospital’s Northern Centre for Cancer Care, is leading the trial in Newcastle. She said:
“Initial results from the early phases of the trial are very encouraging, and we now need to understand how effective it is in a first line setting.
“The hope for the future is that we can harness the patient’s own immune system to eradicate lymphoma and avoid toxic chemotherapy.
“We hope this phase III study will take us a step closer to improving the lives of patients with follicular lymphoma.
The trial has been supported by the trust’s oncology and haematology research team.
The patient who was the first recruit to the trial said:
“I wanted to have the opportunity to be treated with new drugs and avoid chemotherapy if possible”
