NHS patients with advanced head and neck cancer will be fast-tracked on to a trial of a vaccine that trains their immune system to destroy tumour cells.
More than 100 patients in England will be matched to the trial running at 15 NHS hospitals over the next year.
Head and neck cancer is a general term to describe forms of the disease in those regions of the body and can include cancer of the mouth, throat or voice box.
About 11,000 cases a year are diagnosed in England and aggressive forms are difficult to treat; more than half of patients die within two years.
Cancer vaccines are a pioneering treatment tailored to each patient and train the body to kill a certain type of cell.
They show promise for numerous types of cancer including bowel, skin, brain and breast.
While other vaccines protect against disease, personalised cancer vaccines are for people who already have it, representing a new type of immunotherapy treatment. It is based on the mRNA technology first used in the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 jab developed in 2020.
The vaccine used in this study, made by BioNTech, has been designed to create two proteins that are commonly found in head and neck cancers associated with high-risk types of human papillomavirus (HPV).
• Treatment could ‘change the world’ for head and neck cancers
These types of cancer, known as squamous cell cancers, develop from flat, scale-like cells in the outer layer of the skin and other areas of the body.
Karin Smyth, a health minister, described the plan as a “massive win for cancer patients”, saying: “These cancer vaccines could be game-changing for patients facing some of the most challenging diagnoses.
“By getting these trials running in our NHS, we’re putting ourselves at the forefront of medical innovation, improving outcomes for people living with cancer.”
Karin Smyth
TIMES PHOTOGRAPHER JAMES GLOSSOP
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The NHS has started rolling out such treatments as part of the Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad, vaccinating thousands of patients against their own cancer.
The head and neck trial is the third to be run through the programme, which is supported by the Cancer Research UK-funded Southampton Clinical Trials Unit.
Professor Peter Johnson, national clinical director for cancer at NHS England, said: “It’s fantastic that more patients with advanced head and neck cancers will now be able to access this potentially transformative vaccine.”
Professor Peter Johnson
DAVID CLARKE/SOLENT
Tamara Kahn, chief executive at Oracle Head & Neck Cancer UK, a charity, said the trial “offers crucial hope to those living with advanced stages of cancer”.
Chris Curtis was diagnosed with HPV-related head and neck cancer in 2011 and set up a support charity, The Swallows.
The 67-year-old, from Blackpool, said: “As a survivor of HPV-related head and neck cancer, I know first-hand the physical, emotional and psychological toll this disease takes.
“With this aggressive cancer, you live in the fear of re-occurrence every day — so anything that could help control the disease or give people peace of mind is groundbreaking.”
The Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad, a partnership between NHS England, the government and BioNTech, has helped refer about 550 patients to trials for vaccines for bowel and skin cancers.