Monday 24 February 2025
Pamela Garner-Jones from Frodsham, Cheshire has been given a second chance at life, thanks to an immunotherapy trial and a groundbreaking national cancer study.
TARGET National is a UK-wide liquid-based molecular profiling programme that uses a blood sample to identify mutations in certain genes and provides personalised treatment options for cancer patients and improve their outcomes. It is part funded by The Christie Charity which supports the work of the world leading cancer centre The Christie hospital in Manchester.
Pamela, 78, was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2021. After receiving chemotherapy treatment, her cancer was initially kept under control, but then it came back in 2024, and the chemotherapy stopped working and further treatment options were limited.
It was then Pamela was offered a lifeline when she was told about TARGET National, a new study that became available for the first time in 2021 at The Christie hospital, where the patient is ‘matched’ or ‘targeted’ to very specific bespoke treatment by a simple blood test which can measure the amount of DNA in the blood, related to the cancer. This can detect a rare alteration that is sometimes seen in cancers.
These simple and non-invasive alternatives to surgical biopsies enable doctors to discover a range of information about a tumour through a simple blood sample. Traces of the cancer’s DNA in the blood can give clues about which treatments are most likely to work for that specific patient.
Known as molecular profiling, this laboratory method is the future of cancer treatment and care and is a powerful tool because it helps doctors understand the specific genetic characteristics of a patient’s cancer, enabling smarter, more precise, and patient-specific cancer care. By analysing the DNA of cancer cells, doctors can identify mutations or markers that drive the disease, allowing them to choose therapies that target those weaknesses directly. This personalised approach can improve outcomes, as targeted treatments are often more effective and cause fewer side effects.
Molecular profiling can also reveal when certain treatments are unlikely to work, sparing patients unnecessary procedures and discomfort.
The TARGET National study is open to cancer patients with solid tumours who have exhausted all other treatment options and are considered by their oncologists to be suitable for early phase, experimental trials.
Launched in July 2021, the study is funded by The Christie Charity and The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, part of Newcastle Hospitals Charity. In collaboration with Roche – one of the world’s leading healthcare companies – the study aims to recruit 6,000 patients across 19 UK Experimental Cancer Medicine Centres (ECMCs) in the UK to establish a national framework where molecular profiling can be offered to patients who have limited treatment options but are physically well. The study has currently recruited just over 3,000 patients with 438 of them at The Christie.
Pamela’s consultant and Chief Investigator for the study, Dr Matthew Krebs, from The University of Manchester and The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, says: “TARGET National provides an invaluable opportunity for cancer patients to access a state-of-the-art blood test for genomic testing and provides a framework for enabling more patients to access promising new experimental medicines in the UK. Ultimately the study aims to collect enough data to help support an NHS application to introduce this test routinely for cancer patients.
“In Pamela’s case, the TARGET National study enabled her to be matched with a drug trial called DETERMINE which she started in 2024. DETERMINE is the first UK precision medicine trial focused on rare cancers, or common forms of cancer with rare genetic changes, which tests a range of therapies specifically targeting key genetic changes in cancer cells.”
“Pamela has had excellent benefit from this matched treatment based on her genetic changes within the cancer. Her tumours have shrunk by almost two-thirds in size and importantly Pamela’s symptoms have resolved providing a much better quality of life.”
The DETERMINE trial is led by the University of Manchester and is sponsored and managed by Cancer Research UK’s Centre for Drug Development. It is run in collaboration with the University of Birmingham, the Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust and The Christie NHS Foundation Trust.
Pamela says: “I’m all in favour of these studies and trials. My attitude is unless you try these things you will never know. I realise some people are nervous about going on a clinical trial, but I think it is an opportunity to help other people in the future as well as myself.
“Thankfully, so far it is working for me, and I’ve been feeling well. With all these treatments and trials, I know there can be side effects but for me all that happened was that I initially felt a bit cold, so I went home, made myself some soup and a hot drink and went to bed. For the next few days, I just kept myself warm and now I’m feeling fine.”
“I still have immunotherapy treatment every three weeks followed by a scan at The Christie. I am so thankful for the excellent staff there who look after me and I’m also incredibly grateful for all those people who support The Christie Charity, through donations and taking part in fundraising events. Their support means that patients like me have the chance to take part in world leading research and trials.”
“If it hadn’t been for TARGET National, I wouldn’t have been identified as suitable for the DETERMINE trial. It’s the best thing since sliced bread!”
Research such as this is central to The Christie Charity’s commitment to supporting The Christie hospital’s vision of ‘learning from every patient’ and trebling the number of patients participating in research by 2030. Studies have shown that cancer patients treated at research-intensive hospitals have better outcomes than those treated in hospitals with little or no research activity. The Charity has pledged to support and fund this goal with £30m over the next five years with the ultimate aim of bringing tomorrow’s treatments to patients faster.
Louise Hadley, Chief Executive of The Christie Charity, says:
“As these pioneering studies continue to evolve, they are setting new standards of care in oncology. The Christie Charity exists to support this innovative and groundbreaking work at The Christie hospital. Our supporters work incredibly hard to ensure Christie patients receive the very best care and treatment and access to the latest clinical trials and cancer research.
“We’re proud to be supporting the pioneering project TARGET National. It will give hope to many more patients like Pamela in the future.”
Pamela is being treated at the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Manchester Clinical Research Facility (CRF) at The Christie.
Any patients interested in taking part in clinical trials should discuss this option with their consultant or GP. Not all patients will fit the criteria for a specific trial. While clinical trials can be successful for some patients, outcomes can vary from case to case.