133486Novel Treatments of Uveal MelanomaClosedFeasibility StudiesInnovate UKThe aim of this project is to evaluate the commercial potential of novel treatments for uveal melanoma. Uveal melanoma is the most prevalent form of ocular cancer and diagnosis rates are rising as populations age and are exposed to more UV light. Ocular cancers affect tens of thousands of lives globally and often result in loss of vision and spreading of life threatening cancers from the eye to vital organs of the body. Visual impairment and blindness resulting from the only current treatment option causes considerable quality of life and economic burdens for affected persons, caregivers and the healthcare system. The mortality rate for uveal melanoma patients whose cancer has spread to other parts of the body from the eye is 50% and this rate has not changed in thirty years. Oxular, a UK-based retinal therapeutics company, was encouraged by leading ocular oncologists to use its technology to develop treatments to improve the standard of care for uveal melanoma patients. Under this project, Oxular will evaluate agents that have demonstrated a potent effect on these types of ocular cancers in very relevant experiments and will deliver these drugs locally directly to the site of the tumour in the eye in a minimally invasive manner using a highly specialized instrument. The treatments are formulated to release the drug over sustained periods with the aim of killing the tumour and reducing the spread of cancers to other parts of the body. These innovative treatments may also allow patients to minimize or avoid radiation therapy, which causes significant trauma to the eye and can lead to blindness. Once developed, these new treatments will become part of the standard of care for patients with significant unmet needs. These treatments will therefore contribute to government cancer policy in the following defined areas: improving treatment, improving access to cancer services, helping survivors live more comfortably.