Major agreement formed to deliver new cancer vaccine trials

Ground-breaking new cancer treatments are one step closer to becoming reality as the government have recently joined forces with BioNTech SE.

Last week, the UK government announced they have signed a new long-term partnership agreement with the German-based company BioNTech, who previously developed the world-leading Covid-19 vaccine Pfizer.

The partnership was formed to provide cancer patients with improved access to the latest cancer trials and therapies currently being developed. This includes UK-based clinical trials intended to help treat patients through the use of precision immunotherapies which work by stimulating the immune system to recognise and eliminate cancer cells. 

Overall, the goal is to produce access to personalised treatments for up to 10,000 patients by 2030.

Although the news was announced on Wednesday last week, BioNTech SE have already begun conducting clinical trials in the UK. Following this, more trials will be launching although the majority of patients are expected to be enrolled from 2026 onwards.

To help deliver this research, BioNTech plans to set up new laboratories in Cambridge with an expected capacity of more than 70 highly skilled scientists as well as a new regional hub for the United Kingdom.

Commenting on the news, UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, said: ‘This landmark new agreement takes us one step closer to delivering life-saving new cancer treatments for thousands of patients right across the country.

‘The UK is a global leader in life sciences – helping to create thousands of highly skilled jobs and pioneering research – and it is testament to this success that BioNTech have chosen to make this significant investment.

‘Personalised cancer vaccines have the potential to completely revolutionise the way we treat this cruel disease and it is hugely welcome that…clinical trials will be rolled out widely.’

In addition to the new partnership being performed, a new Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad (CVLP) led by NHS England in collaboration with Genomics England, will help to rapidly identify cancer patients who could be eligible for potential trials.

The launch pad is set to work by creating a database of suitable NHS cancer patients who will be offered the choice to take part in personalised cancer vaccine trials.

Amanda Pritchard, chief executive of the NHS, said: ‘The NHS will not stop in its efforts to pioneer new treatments that could be life-changing for future generations.

‘This is why we are developing our very first Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad, enabling us to identify thousands of NHS patients suitable for cancer vaccine trials – giving them the earliest possible access to cutting-edge technology that has the potential to change cancer care forever.

‘Thanks to advances in treatment and care alongside NHS awareness campaigns, cancer survival is at an all-time high, but the potential to stop cancer from returning is truly remarkable – and with the first patients set to take part in vaccine trials this autumn, we hope to find a way of vaccinating people against their own cancers and improve their chances of survival.’

Against this backdrop, in April this year NHS England published a one-year cancer survival index which looks at survival rates in 2020 compared to 2005. The results are extraordinary. The document shows the overall first-year survival rate has risen from 9% to 74.6%, suggesting huge medical advancements have helped combat the disease, but more work can be done.

Image: Mufid Majnun