Cancer Research UK is set to initiate a trial of a vaccine aimed at preventing lung cancer in patients at high risk.
The LungVax vaccine was developed by researchers at the University of Oxford and University College London, with the aim of training the immune system to target and destroy abnormal lung cells before they turn out to be cancerous.
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The Phase I trial will determine the optimal LungVax dose for individuals at high risk of the disease and will monitor potential side effects.
It will enrol a small group of participants who have been treated for early-stage lung cancer but remain at high risk of recurrence, as well as individuals undergoing targeted lung health checks in NHS England’s screening programme.
If initial data are encouraging, later trial phases could include a broader cohort of high-risk individuals.
LungVax employs technology similar to that of the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine, providing genetic instructions that assist the immune system in recognising and destroying abnormal cells.
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By GlobalDataIn lung cancer, these cells can be differentiated from healthy tissue by “red flag” proteins called neoantigens, which are expressed on the cell surface due to mutations in cancer-causing DNA.
Cancer Research UK has granted the LungVax team up to £2.06m ($2.71m), with support from the CRIS Cancer Foundation, to initiate testing of the vaccine in a four-year Phase I trial anticipated to begin mid-2026.
University of Oxford experimental oncology professor and LungVax project co-founder Sarah Blagden said: “Lung cancer is lethal and blights far too many lives. Survival has been stubbornly poor for decades. LungVax is our chance to do something to actively prevent this disease.
“Years of research into the biology of cancer, understanding the fundamental changes which occur in the very earliest stages of the disease, will now be put to the test.”
