A MAN whose lung cancer was discovered ‘by coincidence’ has become the first person in the UK to receive a ‘game-changing’ vaccine.
Janusz Racz, 67, is taking part in a trial of the jab which is designed to help the immune system recognise and fight lung cancer.
The vaccine works by priming the patient’s immune system to recognise and fight tumour markers created by non-small cell lung cancer.
The process leaves healthy cells untouched, unlike chemotherapy.
The jab, called BNT116, is based on mRNA, the same technology used in the Covid-19 vaccine.
Consultant medical oncologist Dr Sarah Benafif is leading the delivery of the study at University College London Hospital.
She said: “The strength of the approach we are taking is that the treatment is aimed at being highly targeted towards cancer cells.
“In this way we hope that in time we can show that the treatment is effective against lung cancer whilst leaving other tissues untouched.”
Janusz, who is originally from Poland but has lived in London for 10 years, received six injections five minutes apart over a half-hour period.
He will get the vaccine every week for six consecutive weeks, and then every three weeks for a total of 54 weeks.
The scientist and dad-of-three was diagnosed with lung cancer on May 1, in what he says was a “coincidence”.
He had been prescribed an inhaler last year, after experiencing some breathlessness.
“I was scheduled for a colonoscopy and my blood pressure was too high, so the doctor decided to send me for a CT colonoscopy, which is different.
“It was the middle of February when they detected something on my lung, my right lung.”
After being sent for urgent tests, doctors confirmed Janusz had lung cancer and he underwent chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
Without treatment, he was told he would have four to five months to live, while chemotherapy and radiotherapy would give him a 35 per cent chance of surviving five years.
“The chemotherapy was particularly challenging, I really wouldn’t want to have that again,” Mr Racz said.
I thought that my participation in this research could help other people in future and help this therapy become more widely available
Janusz Racz
“The first good news came when doctors told me that my tumour was shrinking faster than expected.”
After having chemotherapy Janusz had a call a phone call with Dr Benafif from UCLH about the trial.
After mulling over the pros and cons with his GP, family and friends, the grandpa told Dr Benafif is was up for trialling the new jab.
He said: “She explained how the vaccine should work and how it was different to the treatment I had recently completed.
“The hope was that it would stop the cancer coming back.
“I thought it over, and talked to my GP, friends and colleagues who are medical doctors, and they all said that I should go for it.
“I decided to take part because I hope it will provide a defence against cancer cells.
“But I also thought that my participation in this research could help other people in future and help this therapy become more widely available.”
Janusz enjoys running but has not been able to do so recently.
He has completed seven marathons across the US and Europe – the first in New York in 2002. He now has his eye on the London race.
He said: “I think that after the treatment, I will get back, I will be stronger. My dream is just to run maybe more marathons.
“I’ve run seven marathons. There are people who run much more, but for me, it’s enough.
“I have never had the opportunity to run a London Marathon because it’s a lottery, and maybe it would be a possibility to run the marathon as a member of this programme.”
NHS England’s national cancer director, Dame Cally Palmer, said this and other cancer vaccines being trialled could mark a huge step in treating the disease.
“If we are successful, they could be revolutionary in vaccinating people against their own cancers to prevent the cancer recurring after their initial treatment,” Dame Cally added.
“Pioneering work is being undertaken by hospitals throughout the country with their university and industry partners to look at ways of harnessing the body’s own immune system to treat a range of cancers.
“A cancer diagnosis is very worrying, but access to groundbreaking trials – alongside other innovations to diagnose and treat cancers earlier – provides hope.
“We expect to see thousands more patients taking part in trials over the next few years.”
Leading charity Macmillan also welcomed the “hugely exciting” news.
Chief medical officer, Richard Simcock, said: “Today marks a hugely exciting step forward for lung cancer treatment, a step that could be lifesaving for many people living with cancer.
“This is a brilliant example of how the UK could become one of the best countries in the world when it comes to cancer care if governments across the UK take urgent action.
“The NHS is at breaking point, with thousands of people waiting too long for treatment, but today proves that better is possible.
“Cancer has led the way in changing the healthcare system before, and we can do this again but we need to see more investment in science and make sure these innovations are made available to those who need them most.
“And if we get this right, we will pave the way for tackling other chronic conditions too.
“It’s vital that governments across the UK prioritise long-term cross-government approaches to revolutionising cancer care to ensure everyone has access to quality and timely treatment and support, every step of the way.”
A trial to determine the safety of a novel vaccine for lung cancer will take place at sites across England and Wales.
The first UK patient received the jab at the National Institute for Health Research UCLH Clinical Research Facility on Tuesday.
But what is the vaccine and how does it work?
The vaccine, known as BNT116, utilises messenger RNA (mRNA), the same technology used in the Covid-19 vaccines.
The jab works by presenting the immune system with tumour markers from non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This primes the body to fight the cancer cells that are expressing these markets while leaving healthy cells untouched.
How is it administered?
This trial will aim to recruit people with NSCLC – from early-stage before surgery or radiotherapy, to late-stage disease or recurrent cancer – to have the jab alongside standard immunotherapy.
The first patient to have the vaccine – Janusz Racz, 67, from London – had six consecutive injections given five minutes apart over a half hour period.
Each jab contained different RNA strands. He will get the vaccine every week for six consecutive weeks and then every three weeks for a year and then every three weeks for a total of 54 weeks.
What are the potential outcomes for lung cancer patients who have the jab?
Professor Siow Ming Lee, a consultant medical oncologist at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH), which is leading the trial in the UK, said he hopes the vaccine will prevent lung cancer from coming back.
Immunotherapy has made “big progress”, according to Prof Lee, but still does not treat all lung cancer patients successfully.
He describes the jab as “another additional immune approach attack” and said it could be an “extra boost” to improve survival rates for people with the disease.
What is the scale of the trial?
The phase one clinical trial will take place at 34 sites across seven countries.
Six are located across England and Wales, with the National Institute for Health Research UCLH Clinical Research Facility leading the trial in the UK.
Other hospital sites are Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Velindre University NHS Trust in Cardiff, The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust on the Wirral, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in London, and The Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Overall, is it hoped about 130 lung cancer patients will be recruited for the study, with 20 based in the UK.
What does the trial hope to achieve and what could happen next?
As a phase one study, this trial will determine the safety of the BNT116 vaccine.
When a phase one trial is successful, researchers usually move on to phase two, which will look at effectiveness and usually includes a larger number of patients. A phase three trial is larger still and usually compares a new treatment to standard treatment.
Prof Lee said he hopes this vaccine eventually “becomes standard of care worldwide and save lots of lung cancer patients”.
Are there vaccines for other types of cancer?
Yes. In April, a final phase three trial involving a personalised mRNA jab for melanoma was launched at UCLH.
The vaccine is custom-built for each patient in just a few weeks and works by telling the body to hunt down cancer cells and prevent the disease from coming back.
A phase two trial, involving pharma firms Moderna and MSD, found the treatment dramatically reduced the risk of the cancer returning in melanoma patients.
In June, it also emerged the first patient in England had received an mRNA vaccine for bowel cancer, which is being developed by BioNTech and Genentech. The trial at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham forms part of NHS England’s Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad.
What do jabs like these mean for cancer care and what could the future hold?
Prof Lee described vaccines like this as “the next big phase of cancer treatment”.
BNT116 is made by BioNTech, which signed an agreement with the Government in July 2023 to provide up to 10,000 patients with precision cancer immunotherapies by 2030.
NHS England’s Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad is also working to fast-track patients to get vaccines at the earliest opportunity.
