Largest T-cell trial on solid tumors marks new era for cancer treatment

Insights from global study can be harnessed for further trials to benefit more patients

- Judith Tan

The completion of the largest-ever immunotherapy clinical trial on solid tumors such as nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) is paving the way for a new era in precision immunotherapy for the future in cancer care.

This is despite the study having ended without an overall survival benefit - the gold standard primary end point in cancer clinical trials - which provides confirmed evidence that a given treatment extends life.

Called Vance, the global, multinational, randomized phase three trial, led by Singapore clinician-scientist Toh Han Chong, is the largest completed trial on T-cell therapy on any solid tumor.

"We are proud of the fact that it was the world's largest... I think it really is a testament to the remarkable work done by my colleagues, especially in a biotech company. These were the actual people making the T-cells in Singapore, so it's kind of a made-in-Singapore triumph," said Professor Toh, who is also deputy chief executive officer of strategic partnerships at the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS).

Solid tumors are abnormal masses of tissue formed in specific organs such as the breasts, brain and upper part of the throat, or nasopharynx.

The Vance study looked at cancer of the nasopharynx since Prof Toh and his team at NCCS have been driving research to develop novel ways to treat Asian-endemic cancers.

NPC is common in males in Singapore and southern China, with an incidence of 8.9 per 100,000 males and 25 per 100,000 males, respectively.

Well-known NPC sufferers include Malaysian badminton star and three-time Olympic silver medalist Lee Chong Wei and South Korean actor Kim Woo-bin.

The current mainstay treatment of early and locally advanced NPC is radiotherapy and chemoradiotherapy, but once it spreads beyond the originating site, treatment is largely not curative, with the median survival currently at 21 to 29 months.