Personalised radiotherapy: Making treatment kinder and more effective

Grant Information

Institute - University of Manchester
Researcher - Dr Alan McWilliam
Grant Award - £346,085
Duration of Funding - 2021-2024
Status - Complete
Reference - MA-CT20-007

Why did we fund this project?

• Radiotherapy can be a very effective treatment for men with localised or locally advanced prostate cancer. However, while it works well for many, the cancer can return for around 20–30% of men, and some experience long‑term side effects.
  
  

• Dr Alan McWilliam and his team aimed to develop an effective way to identify which men are at higher risk of their cancer returning after radiotherapy, enabling additional treatment to be offered sooner.
  
  

• They also aimed to understand how radiotherapy could be more carefully tailored to each man and delivered more accurately, to help protect healthy organs and reduce side effects. 

What did the researchers do?

• The team examined levels of PSA in men who had previously been treated with radiotherapy to see whether particular patterns over time are linked to an increased risk of the cancer returning.
  
  
  

• The team also analysed imaging scans to see if radiation to certain parts of nearby healthy organs is linked to the type and severity of side effects men develop after radiotherapy.

What did the researchers achieve? 

• The researchers found that specific patterns in levels of PSA after radiotherapy are linked to an increased risk of the cancer coming back.
  
  

• They also identified specific areas of nearby healthy organs where higher radiation exposure can result in specific side effects.
  
  

• The team also found that specific genetic differences may make some men more sensitive to developing certain side effects from radiotherapy.

How will this benefit men?

• Monitoring patterns in levels of PSA after radiotherapy could help doctors identify earlier which men may be at risk of their cancer coming back, so that further treatment can be offered more quickly.
  
  
• By learning which areas of nearby organs are more sensitive to radiation and how a man's genes influence his risk of side effects, means radiotherapy can be better tailored to reduce harm and improve the quality of life for men with prostate cancer.