Today has seen findings from the GALLIUM trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The study, which is investigating the treatment of follicular lymphoma, was led by the pharmaceutical company Roche, and saw significant input from the CTC at a number of levels (including data review and publication).

Follicular lymphoma—the most common type of low-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma—is so called because the abnormal cells which cause it often gather in lymph nodes as follicles or clumps. Around 1,900 people in the UK are diagnosed with follicular lymphoma every year.

GALLIUM is the largest randomised study in follicular lymphoma conducted to date. It has demonstrated that treatment involving a drug called obinutuzumab (a type of monoclonal antibody), when combined with chemotherapy, significantly prolongs progression-free survival in patients when compared to the current standard treatment (which involves a drug called rituximab, plus chemotherapy). 

CTC research fellow Beth Phillips remarked: ‘Obinutuzumab is a promising new treatment for follicular lymphoma and may become a future standard of care. We await the publication of additional trial analyses (such as PET studies) and longer term follow-up, which will be crucial to support these early results.’

On the collaboration with Roche, Phillips added: ‘The success of this trial was a result of global academic collaboration and effective partnerships with industry, both of which are often key in conducting large clinical trials in lymphoma.’

The NEJM article can be read in full here.