Exploring IDO in head and neck cancer

• Research type

  Research Study

• Full title

  A preliminary investigation of indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) immune status in head and neck cancer

• IRAS ID

  186025

• Contact name

  James O'Hara

• Contact email

  james.ohara@nuth.nhs.uk

• Sponsor organisation

  Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals Foundation Trust

• Duration of Study in the UK

  0 years, 11 months, 30 days

• Research summary

  Exploring indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) in Head and Neck Cancer

  Head and neck cancer (HNC) incidence is increasing in both middle and later life. Symptoms include neck lump, hoarse voice, pain, and difficulty swallowing. Over 8,000 new cases occur annually in the UK. Fifty percent of patients die from disease. HNC survivorship is challenging for patients and carers, due to the profound functional and cosmetic consequences of treatment.
  The HNC tumour microenvironment (TME) is a site of intense interactions between cells of the immune system. This knowledge has driven a recent emergence in HNC treatment targeting processes of the immune system, termed immunotherapy. Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) is a critical enzyme in the TME involved in immune processes which can be exploited to improve treatment outcomes. IDO activity is increased in many cancers and it inhibits natural and therapy-induced anti-tumour immunity. The research group has already mapped the activity of IDO in lung cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy and found that disease and progression free survival was greater in those whose IDO activity decreased during treatment.

  We aim to address three unanswered questions:
  1) What is the baseline IDO activity in newly diagnosed HNC patients?
  2) Does IDO activity measured in the blood relate to the expression of IDO in the TME?
  3) How does IDO activity vary during HNC (chemo) radiotherapy treatment?

  This preliminary work is the first step in determining the role of IDO in suppressing the activity of the immune system during HNC treatment. The long-term goal is to evaluate the role of molecules, which inhibit IDO activity (IDO inhibitors) in HNC immunotherapy regimens, then identify HNC patient subgroups, which may benefit from precision stratified immunotherapy treatment based on their IDO status.

• REC name

  North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 2 Research Ethics Committee

• REC reference

  19/NE/0046

• Date of REC Opinion

  1 Apr 2019

• REC opinion

  Further Information Favourable Opinion