Army veteran first in world to trial cancer drug

Terry Barraclough was first diagnosed with follicular lymphoma six years ago

An army veteran and grandfather from Kent is the first in the world to be recruited to a study trialling a new treatment for blood cancer.

Terry Barraclough received his first dose of the trial drug at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital after he suffered a relapse of his lymphoma, a type of blood cancer.

The study is a phase 3 trial, testing the new drug against other available treatments in people whose cancer has returned.

Terry, who is 82 and lives in Cheriton, said: "I was absolutely honoured and chuffed to bits to learn that I am the first in the world on this trial – the numero uno!"

The team from East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust hopes it will be more effective and have fewer side effects than other options such as chemotherapy.

Previous trials of the drug established it was safe for patients and that it could potentially kill cancer cells.

Mr Barraclough, who spent 22 years in the army, was first diagnosed with follicular lymphoma six years ago.

It is a type of blood cancer affecting lymphocytes, a crucial part of the immune system.

Chemotherapy put it into remission, but it returned and he needed more treatment.

He relapsed again earlier this year but is hopeful the trial drug is having an effect.

Mr Barraclough will have to take a tablet daily for two weeks each month for a year.

"I was a bit nervous at first, because a trial is a test and you don't know if you will see the results, but even if it doesn't do me any good I hope it will help someone else in the future," he said.

The trial drug is a tablet known as immune modulatory therapy, meaning it releases small molecules that bind to protein and kill cancer cells.

It has previously been tested as a first line treatment for newly diagnosed cancer patients, but this trial investigates its effectiveness in patients whose disease has returned.

'Excited to see results'

Dr Moya Young, the lead investigator for the trial at the East Kent Cancer Research Centre, said: "This is a chemo-free option for patients who have already undergone some quite gruelling treatment and we are very excited to see the results.

"It is rare for the NHS to be able to recruit the first global patient but the team have worked incredibly hard to make this happen and to get the necessary approvals.

"Terry is the first of what we hope will be several hundred patients in countries around the world.

"We are so grateful to them all for being part of this study, which we hope will lead to better treatments for more patients in the future."