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February 5, 2024
Dr. Tony Dhillon, a British-Indian medical oncologist, is spearheading the first international trial of a groundbreaking vaccine aimed at combating bowel cancer. The 53-year-old consultant at Royal Surrey NHS Hospital Trust and senior lecturer in oncology was born in Maidenhead, England. His paternal grandfather, who initially worked in a “Brylcreem” factory, had migrated to the UK from Surja village in the Jalandhar district of Punjab in the early 1950s.
For the past five years, Dr. Dhillon has collaborated with Professor Tim Price in Australia on developing this landmark vaccine. The vaccine, designed by Imugene, a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company in Australia, targets a specific sub-type of bowel cancer, affecting approximately 15% of the total population of patients.
Explaining the vaccine’s mechanism, Dr. Dhillon stated, “Three doses of the vaccine will be given two weeks apart before surgery to activate the immune system to kill the cancer. We reckon when patients go to operation there won’t be much cancer left, and with some people it might go completely. We need to do the trials to prove that, and that is what we are about to start.”
The phase 2 trial will involve 44 patients and is expected to last one year, conducted at 10 centers across the UK and Australia. Dr. Dhillon expressed optimism about the broader applications of the vaccine, stating, “This vaccine could work in other cancers, and we may do trials with other cancer types later on.”
Reflecting on his roots and the transformative journey from his grandfather working in a Brylcreem factory to leading an international vaccine trial, Dr. Dhillon shared his pride in contributing to groundbreaking research. “I feel very proud to do international level research which could impact hundreds of thousands of people. It shows how much of a meritocracy the UK is — for someone who is a second-generation Punjabi from a working-class family to reach this level is fantastic,” he said.
The vaccine trial, with Dr. Dhillon as the chief investigator, holds the promise of being a major breakthrough in the treatment of bowel cancer, potentially offering hope to patients worldwide.
