Asked by: Baroness Randerson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Brain Tumours report Brain Tumours: Pathway to a Cure — breaking down the barriers, published on 28 February, whether they have accepted recommendation six contained in that report that specific funding should be ring-fenced for research into childhood brain tumours; and if so, what is the timescale for implementation.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
It is not usual practice to ring-fence research funds for particular topics or conditions. As with other Government funders of health research, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) does not allocate funding for specific disease areas. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.
The Department welcomes the APPG report, recommendations of which continue to be worked through with the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, and UK Research and Innovation and the Medical Research Council (MRC), and with the NIHR.
Asked by: Baroness Randerson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what collaborative research they are currently funding in partnership with other countries into childhood brain tumours, including Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma; and whether this includes funding for access to clinical trials.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows eight research studies around Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma, funded by research funding partners in the charity and public sectors since 2013 which have been supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR):
Study Title | Opening Date | Closure Date | Funders | Status |
Phase I trial of afatinib in paediatric patients with neuroectodermal tumours and rhabdomyosarcoma | 13/07/2015 | 05/05/2020 | Boehringer Ingelheim Ltd | Closed to Recruitment, Follow Up Complete |
A Phase I/II, Multicenter, Open-Label, Dose-Escalation Study of the Safety and Pharmacokinetics of Cobimetinib in Pediatric and Young Adult Patients with Previously Treated Solid Tumors | 25/08/2016 | 31/12/2018 | F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd | Closed to Recruitment, In Follow Up |
Biological Medicine for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma Eradication (Biomede) | 14/04/2017 | 29/09/2019 | Cancer Research UK | Closed to Recruitment, In Follow Up |
Phase Ib /II Clinical Trial of Nivolumab Monotherapy and Nivolumab in Combination with Ipilimumab in Pediatric Subjects with High Grade Primary CNS Malignancies | 14/08/2017 | 22/02/2019 | Bristol-Myers Squibb International Corporation | Closed to Recruitment, In Follow Up |
A PHASE 2 CLINICAL STUDY OF POMALIDOMIDE (CC-4047) MONOTHERAPY FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS WITH RECURRENT OR PROGRESSIVE PRIMARY BRAIN TUMORS | 17/10/2017 | 27/09/2018 | CELGENE CORPORATION | Closed to Recruitment, In Follow Up |
A Phase 1/2, Single-arm Study to Evaluate the Safety, Pharmacokinetics, and Antitumor Activity of Avapritinib in Pediatric Patients with Solid Tumors Dependent on KIT or PDGFRA Signaling | 15/02/2023 | 31/01/2025 | Blueprint Medicines Corporation | Suspended |
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*** Please note that the 2 commercial studies, due to the commercial sensitivity, cannot be shared more widely or made public.
NIHR provides infrastructure support to studies taking place in the National Health Service. For example, staff, research nurses, local networks and NHS trusts will work across many studies, to varying degrees. As a result, NIHR cannot provide precise information on expenditure.
The NIHR Clinical Research Network supports the delivery of high-quality research across the NHS, community and social care and public health organisations. It does this by meeting the costs of additional staff, facilities, equipment and support services.
In May 2018 the Government announced £40 million for brain tumour research as part of the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission. The Government is committed to funding high-quality brain cancer research. The £40 million funding remains available.
Asked by: Baroness Randerson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much funding they have allocated for research into the treatment of Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma brain tumours in children in each of the last 10 years; and to which organisations were those funds allocated.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows eight research studies around Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma, funded by research funding partners in the charity and public sectors since 2013 which have been supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR):
Study Title | Opening Date | Closure Date | Funders | Status |
Phase I trial of afatinib in paediatric patients with neuroectodermal tumours and rhabdomyosarcoma | 13/07/2015 | 05/05/2020 | Boehringer Ingelheim Ltd | Closed to Recruitment, Follow Up Complete |
A Phase I/II, Multicenter, Open-Label, Dose-Escalation Study of the Safety and Pharmacokinetics of Cobimetinib in Pediatric and Young Adult Patients with Previously Treated Solid Tumors | 25/08/2016 | 31/12/2018 | F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd | Closed to Recruitment, In Follow Up |
Biological Medicine for Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma Eradication (Biomede) | 14/04/2017 | 29/09/2019 | Cancer Research UK | Closed to Recruitment, In Follow Up |
Phase Ib /II Clinical Trial of Nivolumab Monotherapy and Nivolumab in Combination with Ipilimumab in Pediatric Subjects with High Grade Primary CNS Malignancies | 14/08/2017 | 22/02/2019 | Bristol-Myers Squibb International Corporation | Closed to Recruitment, In Follow Up |
A PHASE 2 CLINICAL STUDY OF POMALIDOMIDE (CC-4047) MONOTHERAPY FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS WITH RECURRENT OR PROGRESSIVE PRIMARY BRAIN TUMORS | 17/10/2017 | 27/09/2018 | CELGENE CORPORATION | Closed to Recruitment, In Follow Up |
A Phase 1/2, Single-arm Study to Evaluate the Safety, Pharmacokinetics, and Antitumor Activity of Avapritinib in Pediatric Patients with Solid Tumors Dependent on KIT or PDGFRA Signaling | 15/02/2023 | 31/01/2025 | Blueprint Medicines Corporation | Suspended |
*** |
|
|
|
|
*** |
|
|
|
|
*** Please note that the 2 commercial studies, due to the commercial sensitivity, cannot be shared more widely or made public.
NIHR provides infrastructure support to studies taking place in the National Health Service. For example, staff, research nurses, local networks and NHS trusts will work across many studies, to varying degrees. As a result, NIHR cannot provide precise information on expenditure.
The NIHR Clinical Research Network supports the delivery of high-quality research across the NHS, community and social care and public health organisations. It does this by meeting the costs of additional staff, facilities, equipment and support services.
In May 2018 the Government announced £40 million for brain tumour research as part of the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission. The Government is committed to funding high-quality brain cancer research. The £40 million funding remains available.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the APPG on Brain Tumours' report entitled Pathway to A Cure, whether his Department has taken steps to implement that report's recommendations on engaging healthcare professionals with research.
Answered by Will Quince
The Department welcomes the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) report, recommendations of which continue to be worked through with the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, UK Research and Innovation and the Medical Research Council (MRC), and with the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
In February 2023 the APPG report recommended that NIHR and UKRI should build research capacity, encouraging and retaining talent through fellowships and research incentives. In July 2023, NIHR jointly funded with the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission (TJBCM), the first two TJBCM Neuro-Oncology Fellowships, a new Fellowship Programme to support high quality training in neuro-oncology clinical practice and research to ensure clinicians are equipped with the relevant research skills needed to lead neuro-oncology trials that change practice.
Other capacity-building initiatives underway include: the designation of 28 TJBCM adult Centres of Excellence within the National Health Service, creating a world-class network of brain tumour treatment and research centres to provide the best care and share best practice; the Tessa Jowell Academy Programme, a free national learning and networking digital platform for NHS brain tumour professionals to share excellence in research, treatment and care; and the TJBCM Brain Tumour Research Novel Therapeutics Accelerator programme, to review and provide guidance on the translation and development of novel treatments, guided by a multidisciplinary international group of experts.
The NIHR is continuing to work with the TJBCM to develop further capacity-building initiatives.
Asked by: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the APPG on Brain Tumours' report entitled Pathway to A Cure, whether his Department plans to implement a joint strategy for brain tumour research with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Will Quince
The Department welcomes the All-Party Parliamentary Group report, recommendations of which continue to be worked through with the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, UK Research and Innovation and the Medical Research Council (MRC), and with the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
The report recommended action by the research funding agencies on coordinating activities and making funding available. We are taking steps to ensure that funders work closely together to coordinate work along the translational pathway, from the discovery and early translational science typically supported by the MRC, feeding through to the applied health and care research funded by the NIHR.
It is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. As with other Government funders of health research, the NIHR does not allocate funding for specific disease areas. The level of research spend in a particular area, is driven by factors including scientific potential and the number and scale of successful funding applications.
Asked by: Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Brain Tumours, Pathway to a Cure – breaking down the barriers, published on 28 February 2023, what is the expected timescale to develop a strategy for adequately resourcing discovery, translational and clinical research into brain tumours as recommended by the report; and whether they will commit to ring fencing the recommended £110 million for this resourcing.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department of Health and Social Care welcomes the All-Party Parliamentary Group report, recommendations of which continue to be worked through with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, UK Research and Innovation and the Medical Research Council (MRC), and with the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR).
The report recommended action by the research funding agencies on coordinating activities and making funding available. We are taking steps to ensure that funders work closely together to coordinate work along the translational pathway, from the discovery and early translational science typically supported by the MRC, feeding through to the applied health and care research funded by the NIHR.
It is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. As with other Government funders of health research, the NIHR does not allocate funding for specific disease areas. The level of research spend in a particular area is driven by factors including scientific potential and the number and scale of successful funding applications.
Asked by: Anum Qaisar (Scottish National Party - Airdrie and Shotts)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding the Government has made available for research into paediatric brain tumours in each of the last five years.
Answered by Will Quince
The Department invests in health research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). NIHR invests in research, clinical expertise, specialist facilities, workforce, and support services across a range of clinical areas. NIHR expenditure on cancer research was over £101 million in 2021/22.
The Government is committed to funding high-quality brain cancer research. In May 2018 the Government announced £40 million for brain tumour research as part of the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission through the NIHR. This includes research into paediatric brain tumours.
The £40 million funding will remain available; if we can spend more on the best quality science, we will do. The level of funding for brain tumour research depends on funding applications received. It is worth noting that all applications to NIHR that have been assessed as “fundable” in open competition have been funded and this will continue.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to encourage clinical researchers to specialise in brain tumour research; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Will Quince
Brain tumour research remains a challenging scientific area, with a relatively small research community. We are working closely with the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission (TJBCM) in hosting customised workshops for researchers, and training for clinicians. These actions will grow capacity for brain cancer research, attracting new researchers, developing the community, and supporting researchers to submit high quality research funding proposals.
The TJBCM recently announced two appointments to the inaugural Tessa Jowell Fellowship programme. These 12-month fellowships will support high quality training in neuro-oncology clinical practice and research, to ensure clinicians are equipped with the relevant research skills needed to lead neuro-oncology trials that change practice.
Additionally, the TJBCM have designated 28 adult Tessa Jowell Centres of Excellence within the National Health Service, which has created a world-class network of brain tumour treatment and research centres to provide the best care and share best practice.
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including research into brain tumours. As with other Government funders of health research, the NIHR does not allocate funding for specific disease areas. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.
Asked by: Caroline Ansell (Conservative - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support researchers to access Government funding for brain tumour research; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Will Quince
Brain tumour research remains a challenging scientific area, with a relatively small research community. We are working closely with the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission (TJBCM) in hosting customised workshops for researchers, and training for clinicians. These actions will grow capacity for brain cancer research, attracting new researchers, developing the community, and supporting researchers to submit high quality research funding proposals.
The TJBCM recently announced two appointments to the inaugural Tessa Jowell Fellowship programme. These 12-month fellowships will support high quality training in neuro-oncology clinical practice and research, to ensure clinicians are equipped with the relevant research skills needed to lead neuro-oncology trials that change practice.
Additionally, the TJBCM have designated 28 adult Tessa Jowell Centres of Excellence within the National Health Service, which has created a world-class network of brain tumour treatment and research centres to provide the best care and share best practice.
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including research into brain tumours. As with other Government funders of health research, the NIHR does not allocate funding for specific disease areas. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the efficacy of Vorasidenib for the treatment of brain tumours.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In the United Kingdom, medicines need to have a licence before they can be marketed, and these are granted by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). The MHRA has not issued a scientific opinion for Vorasidenib. Should an application for Vorasidenib be received, the MHRA will consider this accordingly.