We're delighted to welcome Professor Fiona Thistlethwaite, the Medical Director of The Christie Clinical Research Facility, as the new Chair of our Scientific Advisory Board (SAB).  

Professor Fiona Thistlethwaite brings a wealth of experience to the role and will lead the SAB in advising Target Ovarian Cancer's research programme in order to drive further progress in ovarian cancer. As a medical oncologist at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, sitting within the Experimental Cancer Medicine Team, Professor Thistlethwaite’s work focuses on clinical trials for cancer patients.  

On her appointment, she said: “Ovarian cancer remains a devastating disease. Although we have made steady progress over the years in developing new treatments there are still too many patients who experience the cancer returning, and where the cancer eventually becomes resistant to the treatments we have available.

Ultimately, we need to prevent or cure more cases of ovarian cancer, and in this role I want to work with Target Ovarian Cancer to help guide their research programme so that together with the research and clinical community we can identify and develop new effective treatment options for women.  

Professor Fiona Thistlethwaite

Currently, Professor Thistlethwaite is working with researchers at the University of Manchester to understand how the immune system impacts the development of cancer and how stimulating the immune system could target, and overcome, cancer.  

She explained:

“One approach is using the body’s own cells to target cancer. It is possible to isolate patients’ immune cells (T cells) and genetically modify them in the laboratory to empower them to attack the cancer cells. This is now a well established in blood cancers through a technology called CAR-T therapy. 

"Unfortunately CAR-T therapy has been less successful to date in solid tumours like ovarian cancer. One of the reasons for this could be that in solid tumours the cancer cells are very effective at damping down the immune system within the cancer lesions themselves, which we describe as an immune suppressive tumour microenvironment.”

The Scientific Advisory Board provides expert advice to guide our research programme which has invested over £1.8 million in 12 research projects across the country since 2012.  

Our Deputy Chief Executive, Helen Dickens, said:  

Working with Professor Thistlethwaite, we hope to deliver even more for our community and change the future for those diagnosed with ovarian cancer. We know that research into ovarian cancer is desperately needed. With guidance from Professor Thistlethwaite and our expert Scientific Advisory Board we can ensure we are investing in projects which will make advances in the treatment of ovarian cancer for all.

 

Read our research strategy, and find out about our funded research projects.