Welsh patients to benefit from increased access to pioneering clinical trials for cancer treatments

A global biotechnology company behind the world’s first approved mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine will support in bolstering the clinical trial infrastructure in Wales with the aim to give cancer patients greater access to clinical trials for investigational cancer vaccines.

The collaboration between Health and Care Research Wales, which supports research delivered throughout Wales, and BioNTech aims to improve the efficiency and delivery of clinical trials in Wales, and coordinate a series of trials that that will allow more patients to access studies for investigational cancer treatments.

The cancer clinicians and research delivery teams in NHS in Wales will deliver the clinical trials as part of the UK BioNTech collaboration. In Wales any patient who is identified by their local clinician as potentially eligible for the trial can be referred to the hospital where the trial is open be that in Wales or elsewhere in the UK.

As part of the efforts with the aim to broaden access to clinical trials, BioNTech is already sponsoring a trial to evaluate a personalised cancer vaccine candidate addressing colorectal cancer patients at Velindre Cancer Centre in Cardiff, while a separate study on head and neck cancer has also recently opened.

Baroness Eluned Morgan MS, Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, said:

“This is an exciting new era for research into cancer and the possibilities that new experimental vaccines might offer to patients across Wales. I’m delighted that BioNTech, with its track record in the field of immunotherapy development, is working with Health and Care Research Wales as partners with the potential to transform lives.”

Dr Nicola Williams, Director of Support and Delivery at Health and Care Research Wales, said:

“BioNTech is well known for researching cutting-edge treatments for some of the world’s most serious and life-threatening diseases such as cancer, COVID-19, malaria and tuberculosis.

“Through the commitment from our clinicians and our fantastic delivery teams across NHS Wales, we believe that this investment will ensure we will more easily able to set up and deliver the BioNTech trials that open in the UK, and, through our One Wales approach give patients in Wales increased choice to participate.”

Professor Rob Jones, Assistant Medical Director at Velindre University NHS Trust, added:

This collaboration has the potential to change lives in Wales, by giving patients greater access to participate in new cancer vaccine trials which may have a benefit on their outcome. The approach taken by BioNTech means that we will be able to streamline the way we recruit to these trials, making them more efficient."