Light-activated therapy for oral epithelial dysplasia

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Oral cancers are the 14th most common cancer in the UK. Around 50% of patients die within 5-years of diagnosis, whilst a reliance on invasive surgery (used in 95% of cases) means that survivors are left with severe life-long impacts affecting swallowing, eating and speech. The number of cases of oral cancer is increasing, particularly in those aged 50+, where the rate of incidence is around 10 to 25 times greater than those aged <39 years, and 2 to 5 times greater than those aged 40-49\. Therefore, there is a need to prevent the development of oral cancer in at-risk patients. One such group of patients are those with a condition called "Oral Epithelial Dysplasia", a pre-cancerous condition presenting with red or white patches on the lining of the mouth. LightOx, based in NE England, has developed novel drugs that can be applied to these patches and activated by a light to precisely destroy the oral epithelial dysplasia and, hence, stop progression to oral cancer, eliminating the need for surgery. Patients could even have multiple lesions treated in one visit in an appointment that would be like visiting the dentist. Compared to surgery, our low-cost, non-invasive treatment will eliminate off-target tissue damage, enabling almost immediate recovery (compared to 6--8 weeks healing after surgery) and long-term impacts on swallowing, taste and speech will be avoided. In this project, LightOx will work with expert partners to convert our lead drug into a topical gel that will make it easy for a doctor to apply inside the mouth. We will then evidence how this gel can be applied to dysplasias and activated to destroy them using light sources already in use in health services. In tandem with the development of the technology, we will work with some of the leaders in the field including world renowned oral cancer experts in the NHS at the Liverpool Head and Neck Centre (LHNC). Together, we will map out the pathway needed to bring our unique therapy to the clinic, taking advice from patient and charity groups to ensure we develop a treatment with the patient in mind. Our technology has potential in other areas such as skin, bladder and eye cancers. Hence, success in this project will not only provide a new treatment to reduce the incidence of oral cancer, but also enable LightOx to develop our platform for other clinical areas in the future.