Brain cancer trial recruits largest ever number of patients

A UCL-led clinical trial for patients with brain cancer has recruited more UK participants than ever before for a study of its kind. Working with seven UK hospitals, including the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, part of UCLH, 119 patients with glioblastoma have been recruited in just over two years to the IPI-GLIO trial. The trial is designed by Dr Paul Mulholland, who leads the UCL Glioblastoma Research Group, and has been funded by the National Brain Appeal and supported by the UCLH NIHR Biomedical Research Centre. Glioblastoma is a very aggressive brain tumour with around 2,200 cases diagnosed each year in England (and around 3,200 across the UK). The average survival time is around 15 months, with fewer than 10 per cent of patients alive five years after diagnosis following standard treatment. In the Phase II Clinical trial, following standard treatment for glioblastoma of surgery (where appropriate), radiotherapy and chemotherapy, patients were given ipilimumab, a drug that has seen significant improvements in survival rates for people with melanoma skin cancer. The drug blocks a key regulator in the immune system, making the immune system more active.