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The work of Colledge and colleagues between 2000 and 2007 has identified and characterised a molecule which is an important regulator of fertility: the neuropeptide kisspeptin.
The identification of its role in fertility has led to kisspeptin and its analogues being tested in clinical trials to make IVF treatment safer (Phase II: one trial), and as therapeutic agents for reproductive system conditions such as delayed puberty, menopause and absence of menstruation (Phase I: four trials). In April 2013, 11 months after the start of the Phase II IVF study, a healthy baby has been born to a participant treated with kisspeptin. Patients enrolled in these fertility trials have testified to the improvement in quality of life which the hope of being able to conceive that this alternative to conventional IVF has brought them.
Research led by University of Oxford scientists has resulted in widespread use of the humanised therapeutic antibody, Campath (alemtuzumab), in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL). Licensed by both the European and American regulatory authorities in 2004 for the treatment of CLL, Campath is used as first-line treatment for patients with aggressive forms of the disease and following relapse. It can induce long-term clinical remission even in cases resistant to other drugs. Campath has now been used in approximately 15,000 patients, and has generated revenues of approximately £750 million from the licensed treatment of CLL.
Temozolomide is a major UK anti-cancer drug development success story. Following chemical synthesis at Aston University, early clinical evaluation of temozolomide carried out at Imperial College optimised how temozolomide was scheduled and delivered to patients to ensure maximum efficacy balanced acceptable side effects. Imperial's early trials demonstrated how the drug could be used effectively to treat patients with a type of brain cancer, glioma, and was pivotal to its subsequent market licensing. ESMO and NICE guidelines recommend temozolomide for use in patients with recurrent glioma and for patients with newly diagnosed Grade IV glioma. Glioma is a relatively rare cancer yet annual sales of temozolomide have been in excess of £900 million per year since 2009. Temozolomide given during and following radiotherapy is now standard of care for glioma and has improved survival compared to previous treatments or radiotherapy alone.
Impact: Health and welfare and public healthcare policy; demonstrating that community-directed treatment of onchocerciasis with doxycycline is effective where ivermectin is contra-indicated.
Significance: 12,936 onchocerciasis patients were treated safely and protected for at least 4 years. The treatment regime has been adopted by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization and governments.
Beneficiaries: Patients with onchocerciasis; governments and policy-makers.
Attribution: Studies performed by a long-standing African-European partnership formed and led by Taylor (UoE).
Reach: International; up to 8 million people in the Congo basin; onchocerciasis patients in Africa where ivermectin is not appropriate plus those in South America participating in focal eradication campaigns.
Research conducted by a multidisciplinary team of oncologists and scientists at the University of Southampton has driven major advances in lymphoma care, leading to the development and standardisation of effective new antibody treatments and optimal drug regimens. Through their direction of international clinical trials, they have influenced care for Hodgkin and Burkitt lymphoma in the UK and internationally, affecting all stages of patient-experience from diagnosis to treatment. Their findings underpin significant improvements in survival and quality of life for the 14,000 people affected by lymphoma in the UK each year.
Breast cancer affects 1/9 women accounting for significant healthcare resources. The Centre for Magnetic Resonance Investigations in Hull have demonstrated that the addition of MRI to conventional triple assessment does not reduce the re-operation rate for most patients, but instead exposes them to unnecessary investigations. These studies have underpinned the formulation of British, European and American Guidelines on optimal utilisation of MRI in women with early breast cancer scheduled for local excision. The knowledge is widely available on Cancer Help web-sites, helping patients to understand their treatment better. The resulting changes in clinical practice have reduced delays in surgery improving patient treatment whilst saving healthcare resources.
A team at the University of Liverpool has undertaken research that has informed practice and policy worldwide in the management of patients presenting with newly diagnosed epilepsy, which has achieved international impact on health. Seizures are common and 3-5% of the population will be given a diagnosis of epilepsy during their lifetime. Decisions about when to start treatment, and if so with which drug are crucial and can have a significant effect on outcomes for the individual and have significant economic consequences for society. The research includes the undertaking and analysis of data from randomised controlled trials. The data analysis is based on the statistical research initiated by Dr Paula Williamson while in the Department of Mathematical Sciences at the University of Liverpool between 1996 and 2000. The research identified the most appropriate first line treatments for patients with newly diagnosed epilepsy, addressing both clinical and cost effectiveness. This work has underpinned national policy and triggered the most recent update of the NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) epilepsy guidelines in 2012.
The provision of effective and sustainable healthcare is a major challenge for society. In the developed world escalating costs are placing a huge burden on finite resources; in the developing world, where financial resources are often extremely limited, providing affordable healthcare is an even greater problem. One innovative route to help alleviate these problems is through drug redeployment, whereby existing drugs are employed in new ways to tackle serious diseases. Combining their knowledge of haematological disease gained from their research over the past 20 years together with a drug redeployment strategy, researchers in the School of Biosciences have developed and trialled new interventions for two blood cell cancers, Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) and Burkitt's Lymphoma (BL), based on the administration of a combination of the lipid lowering drug Bezalip (Bez) and the female contraceptive Provera (MPA). As a result:
Cancer research at the University of Salford focuses on developing new and improved treatments for cancer, particularly for children with cancer, demonstrating the following impact:
Scientists at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) have proven that targeting an essential bacterial symbiont, Wolbachia, with a course of antibiotics cures patients of their parasitic worms and improves disease pathology. This discovery in 1999 offers superior efficacy compared to existing anti-filarial drugs delivering prophylaxis, transmission blocking, safe macrofilaricidal activity and improved case management therapy. This approach has been endorsed by WHO elimination programmes for onchocerciasis, (Onchocerciasis Elimination Programme for the Americas, OEPA) and lymphatic filariasis (Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis, GPELF). The Centre for Disease Control (CDC), also recommends this new strategy for elimination and morbidity management.