A scientist based at the Centre for Cancer Immunology is leading a new observational trial, evaluating immune responses in patients with lymphoid cancers to COVID-19 vaccines.
The Prospective Observational Study Evaluating COVID-19 Vaccine Immune Responses in Lymphoid Cancer (PROSECO) trial launched earlier this year will study the immune responses to all approved vaccines in the UK.
Lymphoid cancers or lymphomas, originate from lymphocytes, a type of immune system cell. PROSECO is looking to recruit 680 patients with all types of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, and chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. Participants will provide blood samples before and after vaccination so that clinicians can study their B and T cell responses.
The trial, which is based at seven sites across the UK – Southampton, Oxford, Nottingham, Leicester, Portsmouth, Norwich, and Newcastle – is being led by Dr Sean Lim , Associate Professor and Honorary Consultant in Haematological Oncology, at the University of Southampton.
She said: “Patients with lymphoid malignancies have weakened immune systems as a result of their disease or treatment. They are therefore at greater risk of develop severe COVID-19 disease and less likely to be protected by vaccines. Whilst we are not issuing individual results from this study, the collective data is critical to help us understand whether these patients require a different vaccination approach.”
The trial has received funding from the Blood Cancer UK Vaccine Research Collaborative a collaboration led by Blood Cancer UK, in partnership with Myeloma UK, the British Society for Haematology and Anthony Nolan. It is also supported by a Dr Lims Cancer Research UK Advanced Clinical Scientist Fellowship and Cancer Research UK/NIHR Southampton Experimental Cancer Medicines funding.