UCLH to drive forward research in cell therapies for solid tumours
04 February 2025
Publish date: 04 February 2025
To mark World Cancer Day 2025, UCLH is announcing that it is expanding research into cell therapies for solid tumours.
It is part of UCLH’s increasing focus on research into advanced treatments for cancer.
This work is supported by the recent recruitment of UCLH’s first medical oncology consultant in cell therapies, and through a new network for developing cell and gene therapies that UCLH is now part of.
The success of cell therapies in cancer
Cell therapies are designed to support the immune system to recognise and fight cancer cells.
In one approach, known as CAR T-cell therapy, T-cells – part of the immune system – are genetically ‘reprogrammed’ to attack and kill cancer cells.
These therapies have been successful where existing cancer treatments have failed.
But until now these cell therapies have shown most success in blood cancers – such as leukaemia and lymphoma – rather than in solid cancers.
Challenges in solid tumours
Solid tumours – such as those found in lung or breast cancer – are more difficult to target with cell therapies.
Blood cancer cells have very specific ‘targets’ that are amenable to treatment and which are not found in other cells in the body.
But in solid tumours, the ‘targets’ found in the cancer cells can be found in the cells of other tissues. This makes targeting treatment at cancer cells challenging.
In addition, in solid cancers, cell therapies have to ‘get through’ body tissue in order to reach the tumour. This can be tough.
Promising treatments
However, new cell therapies for solid tumours are now coming through.
The first two cell therapies for solid tumours were recently approved in the United States for use in clinical care. It is hoped approval in the UK and Europe will soon follow.
One treatment – called tumour-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy – has been approved for melanoma, a type of skin cancer.
Another – T-cell receptor therapy (TCR-T) – has been approved for sarcoma, a rare cancer that starts in the bones (see ‘Cell therapies for cancer – how they work’).
UCLH was involved in trialling both treatments through the Sir Naim Dangoor Centre for Cellular Immunotherapy at UCLH, funded by the Dangoor Family’s Exilarch’s Foundation, and through research supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) UCLH Biomedical Research Centre. UCLH will aim to develop these and other treatments, including CAR T therapy, further in solid tumours.
New consultant for UCLH
To strengthen our research in solid tumours, UCLH has employed its first medical oncology consultant specialising in cell therapies, with the NIHR UCLH BRC funding 50% of the salary. It represents the first solid tumour post fully integrated into clinical care delivery for cell therapies.
Dr Maise Al Bakir, who has a background in cancer research, will look for opportunities to bring new clinical trials of cell therapies for solid tumours to patients.
She also plans to support staff training around cell therapies – widening cancer clinical teams’ expertise in this area.
“The number one goal is to cure more people with cancer. We think cell therapies have the potential to do that. We hope to see the same kind of success in solid tumours as blood cancers,” Dr Al Bakir said.
“We need more trials and innovative cell therapy designs for solid tumours. We need these therapies to be effective, whilst minimising the side effects.
“We also want to optimise use of treatments that are approved for solid tumours, such as TIL therapy and TCR therapy.”
“For example, in the longer term, we want to minimise stays in hospital, as cell therapies can involve an in-patient stay of 2 to 4 weeks or longer, but ideally we want to move to more of an outpatient service.”
A new research network for cell therapies
Cell therapy research at UCLH will be supported through UCLH involvement in a new network for cell and gene therapies.
The London Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre (ATTC) network will work to speed up the delivery of cell and gene therapy clinical trials, and aim to help more patients access transformative treatments, through its partner organisations working together.
It will work in cancer, but other areas too. For example, a UCLH trial of CAR T-cell therapy in lupus is part of UCLH’s contribution to the ATTC.
The ATTC is coordinated by The Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult, an independent organisation, and receives funding from the NIHR and Innovate UK.
UCLH involvement in the ATTC is led by Prof Karl Peggs and Prof Emma Morris.
What’s next
New cell therapies may have most promise in solid tumours where the cancers have lots of mutations (such as melanoma, lung or bladder cancers), or that have very unique genetic or protein changes that are susceptible to targeted treatment.
Dr Al Bakir said: “These therapies are at the forefront of medical innovation.
“We need more basic and clinical research into the use of cellular therapies for the treatment of solid tumour malignancies.
“We are very hopeful for the future.”
Tumour-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy
TILs are immune cells found naturally within a tumour, which attack cancer cells. TIL therapy boosts the number of TILs inside the tumour – boosting their ability to fight the cancer.
A TIL therapy for melanoma was recently approved in the US. This followed trials in which 30% of participants with melanoma responded to TIL therapy.
T-cell receptor therapy (TCR-T)
In TCR-T, a patient’s T-cells (part of their immune system) are genetically engineered to add on molecules called T-cell receptors, which attack cancer cells.
A TCR-T for sarcoma was recently approved in the US, following trials which found the therapy was promising in terms of progression-free survival of the cancer.
CAR-T cell therapy
In CAR-T cell therapy, a patient’s T-cells are genetically engineered to add on molecules called chimeric antigen receptors (CARs), which attack cancer cells. Like TCR therapy, CAR-T cell therapy involves genetically engineering T-cells. But the two approaches target cancer cells in different ways.
CAR-T cell therapy is currently approved in the US and UK for certain blood cancers.
