Current research into bladder cancer

In Southampton, Professor Simon Crabb is leading a clinical trial called AURORA to test immunotherapy in a rare type of cancer called urinary tract squamous cell carcinoma (UTSCC). The trial will determine whether the drug atezolizumab, which inhibits a molecule called PD-L1, is safe, effective and tolerable for patients with UTSCC. 

Professor Robert Huddart is running a nationwide clinical trial, organised by the Institute of Cancer Research, to investigate whether adding radiotherapy to an immunotherapy drug called atezolizumab improves treatment response in people with urothelial carcinoma that has spread. As immunotherapy is one of the only treatments available for this type of cancer, if radiotherapy increases treatment response it could provide a new option for those who don’t initially respond.

At the University of Birmingham, Professor Richard Bryan is developing a urine test that could be used to diagnose bladder cancer. This test could make the diagnosis of bladder cancer kinder, as its less invasive than flexible cystoscopy, the test currently used to investigate common bladder cancer symptoms like blood in the urine.