QIMR Berghofer’s next generation immunotherapy for brain cancer treatment will advance to a phase 1 clinical trial after receiving funding from the prestigious CUREator incubator for the Institute’s biotech spin-out, Cyteph.

CUREator is Australia’s national biotech incubator and the $1.5 million grant to Cyteph will accelerate the development of T cell therapies to treat the deadly brain cancer glioblastoma.

QIMR Berghofer has previously trialled CMV-specific T cell therapies derived from each glioblastoma patient, but the new clinical trial set to begin in October will assess a next generation “off-the-shelf” immunotherapy which can be delivered to the patient much faster.

The ultimate goal is to conduct a further clinical trial within two years of a new engineered T cell therapy that could be a game-changer not only against glioblastoma, but all solid tumours including lung and prostate cancers.

QIMR Berghofer Tumour Immunology Group leader and Cyteph founder Professor Rajiv Khanna AO said the CUREator funding is a big vote of confidence in the therapy.