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02/08/2004
Gene therapy trial for cancer patients gets green light
The green light has been given for a large clinical trial of a new gene therapy treatment for patients with Glioma - one of the most aggressive types of brain tumours for which there is currently no cure.
The new gene therapy treatment involves injecting Herpes simplex virus into the brain tumours of Glioma patients. The virus is modified so that it targets and kills cancerous cells but leaves normal brain cells undamaged. The first patient to receive the treatment seven years ago is alive today despite initially being told he had just four months to live.
As gene therapy is a relatively new form of experimental treatment, it must be tightly regulated to make sure research meets the highest standards, is ethically and scientifically sound and that patient welfare is paramount.
Researchers in Glasgow needed the approval of the Gene Therapy Advisory Committee (GTAC), the national research ethics committee for gene therapy, before they could set up this large-scale clinical trial of the new treatment.
Initial results of the treatment from earlier trials "are promising", said the health department.
Professor Norman Nevin, Chair of the Gene Therapy Advisory Committee, said: "Gene therapy offers enormous potential to patients with conditions such as cancer and the UK has been at the forefront of research in this area.
"This new treatment could offer hope to patients with malignant Gliomas. After carefully considering the risks and benefits to patients, the Committee has decided to give the go ahead to further trials so that we can demonstrate the effectiveness of this new therapy".
Since approving the first gene therapy trial in the UK in 1993, GTAC has approved 90 gene therapy clinical trials, involving over 700 patients. These gene therapy studies target inherited disorders such as Cystic Fibrosis and Hurler's Syndrome, infectious diseases such as HIV infection, and vascular disease. The majority (72%) of trials are for the treatment of cancer, including breast, ovarian, cervical, pancreatic, prostate, bladder, head & neck, colorectal and liver cancer as well as skin cancer.
The June 2003 White Paper 'Our Inheritance, Our Future: Realising the potential of genetics in the NHS', committed over £10 million for gene therapy.
(gmcg)
The new gene therapy treatment involves injecting Herpes simplex virus into the brain tumours of Glioma patients. The virus is modified so that it targets and kills cancerous cells but leaves normal brain cells undamaged. The first patient to receive the treatment seven years ago is alive today despite initially being told he had just four months to live.
As gene therapy is a relatively new form of experimental treatment, it must be tightly regulated to make sure research meets the highest standards, is ethically and scientifically sound and that patient welfare is paramount.
Researchers in Glasgow needed the approval of the Gene Therapy Advisory Committee (GTAC), the national research ethics committee for gene therapy, before they could set up this large-scale clinical trial of the new treatment.
Initial results of the treatment from earlier trials "are promising", said the health department.
Professor Norman Nevin, Chair of the Gene Therapy Advisory Committee, said: "Gene therapy offers enormous potential to patients with conditions such as cancer and the UK has been at the forefront of research in this area.
"This new treatment could offer hope to patients with malignant Gliomas. After carefully considering the risks and benefits to patients, the Committee has decided to give the go ahead to further trials so that we can demonstrate the effectiveness of this new therapy".
Since approving the first gene therapy trial in the UK in 1993, GTAC has approved 90 gene therapy clinical trials, involving over 700 patients. These gene therapy studies target inherited disorders such as Cystic Fibrosis and Hurler's Syndrome, infectious diseases such as HIV infection, and vascular disease. The majority (72%) of trials are for the treatment of cancer, including breast, ovarian, cervical, pancreatic, prostate, bladder, head & neck, colorectal and liver cancer as well as skin cancer.
The June 2003 White Paper 'Our Inheritance, Our Future: Realising the potential of genetics in the NHS', committed over £10 million for gene therapy.
(gmcg)
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24 June 2003
£50m funding unveiled for NHS gene research
The government is set to promote the development of genetics within the NHS following its decision to plough £50 million into the scheme over the next three years. The White Paper 'Our Inheritance, Our Future - Realising the potential of genetics in the NHS' sets out the government's strategy.
£50m funding unveiled for NHS gene research
The government is set to promote the development of genetics within the NHS following its decision to plough £50 million into the scheme over the next three years. The White Paper 'Our Inheritance, Our Future - Realising the potential of genetics in the NHS' sets out the government's strategy.
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