Manchester patient takes part in first pioneering cancer trial

The study aims to help cancer patients who either fail to respond, or become resistant to chemotherapy, and has launched at The Christie hospital in Manchester.

The study is a Phase 1 trial of an investigational medicine called AZD0156 together with Lynparza (olaparib). Both compounds belong to a class of drugs called DNA Damage Response (DDR) inhibitors which increase the amount of genetic damage in a cancer cell so that it dies without affecting normal cells.

Mother of three Amanda Haddock, 48 from Bradford, West Yorkshire is one of the first patients to trial the innovative drug which she started taking at the end of April.

Amanda was first diagnosed with cancer in her head and neck in 2014 and underwent surgery and radiotherapy to remove the tumours. In September 2015 the cancer returned with further tumours appearing to the side of her face.

Amanda underwent two courses of chemotherapy over the following months however both were ineffective as her cancer was terminal.

The only treatment option available to Amanda to prolong her life then was surgery but because of the location of the tumours, there was a risk of disfigurement.

Amanda said: “After my initial treatment in 2014, all the cancer appeared to have been removed. It wasn’t until a scan in 2015, that it was confirmed my cancer had returned and there were more tumours. It was devastating news for my family and I.

She continued: “After not responding to the chemotherapy, my only option was surgery and I had visions of looking like an elephant woman with a terribly disfigured face. When I took the call from the doctor at The Christie who confirmed that I was compatible for this trial, I felt very lucky. I told her that it couldn’t help me if I didn’t try it, so let’s give it a go. If nothing else, it has really given me hope.”

Dr Emma Dean, lead investigator on the study at The Christie, explains: “Chemotherapy and radiotherapy is ineffective for some patients as their cancer cells are able to repair, becoming resistant to standard treatment.

“The new drug is likely to be most effective when paired with standard chemotherapy or radiotherapy as it sensitises cancer cells and targets proteins in the body that help a cancer cell repair itself.”

The Christie hospital is one of only four sites worldwide and the only site in the UK to offer this first of its kind drug trial to patients with solid tumours. The trial is initially recruiting small numbers of patients with the end aim to progress the trial to the next phase.