Screening blood donated from NSCLC cancer patients and controls

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Screening of tumour associated antigens using peripheral blood mononuclear cells donated from Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer patients and age matched controls

  • IRAS ID

    133451

  • Contact name

    Sanjay Popat

  • Contact email

    sanjay.popat@rmh.nhs.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    Immune Targeting Systems

  • Research summary

    Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide, with Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) accounting for approximately 85% of all cases. Most patients with NSCLC are diagnosed at an advanced stage; approximately 70% of NSCLC cases are locally advanced or metastatic (it has spread from the place where it first started). Presently, the overall survival rates for advanced or metastatic NSCLC are poor; the 5-year survival rate is 5% for stage IIIB NSCLC (inoperable, locally advanced) and <1% for stage IV disease (distant metastases). Despite the introduction of new chemotherapeutic agents and molecularly targeted drugs, worldwide, outcomes remain poor with lung cancer killing over 1 million people a year. With no new drugs slated to be launched in the immediate future lung cancer remains an area with high unmet need.
    The objective of the project is to use white blood cells, isolated from blood samples, called peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) to develop immunological assessments (the primary one is called IFN-γ ELISpot assay) as a tool to select peptides to be included in a new cancer vaccine.
    Once the assay has been refined, the data generated will inform which tumour associated antigen (TAA)-derived long peptides could be included in a therapeutic vaccine for the treatment of NSCLC patients and which patients are suitable for vaccine treatment based on either magnitude or frequency of response.

  • REC name

    South Central - Oxford C Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    13/SC/0357

  • Date of REC Opinion

    3 Jul 2013

  • REC opinion

    Further Information Favourable Opinion