Cambridge Stem Cell Institute researchers and collaborators at the Cambridge Academy of Therapeutic Sciences (CATS) are participating in a €2 million project led by Professor Clare Blackburn at the University of Edinburgh to establish the European Consortium for Communicating Gene and Cell Therapy Information (EuroGCT).
Gene therapy is an exciting area of translational medicine that can be transformative in paediatric genetic diseases and potentially neurodegenerative and other disorders. Cell therapy involves the transfer of whole, live cells into a patient to help treat or cure a disease, with these cells coming either directly from the patient or from a healthy cell donor.
There are legal and ethical issues associated with both gene and cell therapy approaches. Therefore clear and accurate communication of information on these approaches is essential in order to achieve their full potential for human health.
The five-year EuroGCT project has two major objectives:
- to provide patients, people affected by conditions, healthcare professionals and citizens with accurate scientific, legal, ethical and societal information related to cell and gene-based therapies.
- to facilitate better decision-making at key points in development of new therapies and thus enable improved product development, by providing the research community and regulatory and healthcare authorities with an information source on the practical steps needed for cell and gene therapy development.
The new consortium unites 49 partner organisations and institutions across Europe with the common goal of providing reliable and accessible information related to gene and cell therapies.
Cambridge Stem Cell Institute Group Leaders Professor David Rowitch and Professor Roger Barker will work with Professor Anne Willis, Dr Laura Itzhaki and Dr Chris Lowe from CATS to lead the Cambridge contribution to the network.
Professor Rowitch said“Gene and cell therapy is core to translational aspirations across the Cambridge Biomedical Campus. Membership of the EuroGCT consortium will help ensure credible information is provided to patients and other stakeholders, who we hope will one day benefit from our research. The new project builds on the success of the EuroStemCell initiative, which has proven invaluable in supporting our commitment to open and trusted public and patient engagement.”
The programme has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. It will run for five years, delivering meaningful information on gene and cell therapy to all stakeholders, from patients to research scientists.
Principal investigator Professor Clare Blackburn said “We are very excited about this new project. It’s part of our responsibility to engage with the public and patients to increase understanding about new and existing cell and gene-based therapies – especially in this era of misinformation - not least because patients, people affected by conditions and healthcare providers have to make important decisions around these new treatments."
"Our project brings together leading players in the different branches of cell and gene therapy development, so we can be sure all of the information and resources we generate represent absolutely current, factually correct information. Development of a consolidated resource to help practitioners develop new cell and gene related therapies is also very timely and we are pleased to help lead this coordinated effort.”