Research overview

Professor Robin Jones, Sarcoma Clinical Trials and Translational Research Group

The Sarcoma Clinical Trials and Translational Research Group aims to improve the outcome of patients with sarcoma by conducting well-designed prospective trials and translational studies. It is involved in a number of international collaborations and aims to perform a number of exploratory studies of novel immunotherapeutic agents in sarcoma.

A number of promising agents are currently being evaluated in clinical trials. A phase II trial randomized patients with soft tissue sarcomas to receive doxorubicin with or without a monoclonal antibody to platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha (PDGFRA).

This trial demonstrated an improvement in overall survival in patients treated with the antibody. Dr Jones is the European lead of a phase III trial of this agent in soft tissue sarcomas. In addition he will be performing an exploratory biomarker window study of this agent in sarcoma patients.

Professor Jones is also the European lead for a phase II trial of a vaccine to NY-ESO-1 (a protein found in many different types of cancer) with a PD-1 inhibitor in patients with myxoid liposarcoma and synovial sarcoma.

A number of other promising systemic therapies are also being developed for specific sarcoma subtypes.

Translational studies include a project evaluating the immunoprofile of specific sarcoma subtypes in collaboration with Dr Paul Huang.