New Agents Committee

The New Agents Committee (NAC) selects new anti-cancer treatments for early clinical trials.

NAC members are expert in early clinical trials of novel agents and other aspects of drug development. Proposals and meetings are confidential. NAC-approved novel agents in development include: molecularly targeted small molecules, cytotoxic agents, antibodies, vaccines, viral gene therapy, immunotherapy, cell therapy, radioimmunotherapy, diagnostics and imaging agents.

Research areas

The NAC is interested in proposals for scientifically-driven trials of novel unregistered anti-cancer agents. NAC reviews:

  • Preclinical development prior to a clinical trial
  • Phase 1 trials, including first-in-human and first-in-class
  • Combination trials of unregistered and registered agents
  • Early phase 2 hypothesis-testing trials

How proposals are judged

Proposals are subject to external, international peer review and are judged on the basis of:

  • Scientific rationale and importance
  • Uniqueness/novelty of the target or agent
  • Clinical direction and unmet medical need
  • Quality of supporting data in relevant models
 

Committee chairs and members

Chair of the New Agents Committee

Professor Pat LoRusso – Yale Cancer Center

Vice Chair of the New Agents Committee

Dr Greg Reyes – Independent, San Diego, USA

NAC members

Professor Mark Cragg – University of Southampton

Dr Fieke Froeling - University of Glasgow

Professor Linda Hakes – Independent, Germany

Professor Margaret Harnett – University of Glasgow

Professor Aslaug Helland - University of Oslo

Dr Sheeba Irshad - Kings College London

Dr Allan Jordan - Sygnature

Mr Bo Kara – Mereo BioPharma

Dr Elaine Kilgour - Redx Pharma

Dr Rebecca Kristeleit - Guy's & St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust

Dr Andy Ryan - Fast Biopharma

Professor Kjetil Tasken – University of Oslo

Professor Fiona Thistlethwaite - University of Manchester

Dr Astrid van der Veldt - Erasmus MC, Rotterdam

Professor Bart Vanhaesebroeck – University College London

Professor Steve Wedge – University of Newcastle

Dr Tim Yap –  M D Anderson, University of Texas

Contact for this committee

Kate Searle

Kate Searle

Research Funding Manager

Kate.Searle@cancer.org.uk

Tel: +44 (0) 20 3469 6929

Schemes reviewed by this committee

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Drug Discovery Committee

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