#NWBO $NWBO #DCVaxforBraelyn
Let’s Call a Spade a Spade
We are up against practically unbeatable opponents. They have deep pockets, power and influence, media attention, and a tight leash on the narrative.
We are playing a deadly game of cards against people that (allegedly) don’t play by the rules. It’s not a coincidence that we’ve demonstrated clinically and statistically significant outcomes, yet nobody has heard of us. It’s not a coincidence that a large pharmaceutical company gets showered with adoration, praise, attention, and funding for a treatment that doesn’t even hold a candle to ours. It’s not a coincidence that we can literally be trending on this platform, and yet our posts garner only a few clicks or ‘likes’ in comparison. It’s not a coincidence that certain people block us when we challenge their agenda of searching for more brain cancer research when a perfectly adequate therapy sits right in their lap. It’s not a coincidence that certain posters come out of the wood work and attack any positive news there with cheap shots and half-answers to any challenge to their opinion. It’s not a coincidence that we have waited so long for something that is, pun intended, a no-brainer.
But poker isn’t just playing the cards you’re dealt; it’s playing your opponent too. So what do you do when the other players seem to have all the chips stacked against you? You play smart. You play carefully. Every hand matters. And sometimes you have to know when to hold, wait for the river, and have your opponent think that they have you beat before you go all in.
I know what cards I hold, and I know I have the winning hand. Soon enough, everyone else will know as well. It takes unfathomable fortitude not to fold when your opponent keeps hammering you over, and over, and over again.
“They” have control of the narrative… until they don’t. Patients are living longer, their families are getting louder, governments are noticing officially, and it won’t be long until the chips are all ours.
They’ve spent years convincing us that we’re a losing hand. I didn’t stay at the table because I was afraid to fold. I stayed because I believe in the cards I’m holding.
Let them come. Let them bluff. Let them believe they’ve won. I’m all in; are you?
The Dapper DO retweeted
$NWBO | ACCOUNTABILITY REQUIRES A VOICE
I sent Professor Anthony Chalmers, who is leading the UK’s brain cancer review, a detailed, evidence-based letter urging a comprehensive assessment of DCVax-L, including the latest clinical findings and developments.
I’m sharing that letter publicly for a reason.
Decision-makers need to know we are paying attention. We follow the science, understand the evidence, ask informed questions, and are willing to speak up.
Silence gives those in authority too much latitude to make decisions without meaningful scrutiny. It also leaves room for outside influences and unchallenged assumptions to shape outcomes.
Speaking up isn’t interference. It’s accountability.
We are not asking anyone to abandon scientific standards. We are insisting that those standards be applied fairly, consistently, and transparently.
Scrutiny cannot stop at the treatment. It must extend to the decisions that determine whether patients ever gain access to it.
For Braelyn. For every patient and family waiting for better options.
Our voices deserve to be heard. The evidence deserves to be examined. And every decision deserves accountability.
$NWBO #DCVax #DCVaxForBraelyn #GBM #Glioblastoma #BrainCancer #BTSM #Immunotherapy #PatientAccess
The Dapper DO retweeted
$NWBO
A video letter to President @realDonaldTrump
@HollensbeBrae is the young woman whose Glioblastoma story you recently shared with @DrOzCMS.
Braelyn and her parents live ten minutes from Wednesday’s campaign stop in Clemson and would like to meet you.
“Today she’s 19 years old, attending college, living her life - and her latest MRI shows no evidence of disease.”
Braelyn receives DCVax-L, a promising personalized cancer vaccine developed by American scientists (@NorthwestBio).
But she can’t get it in the U.S. Her family has to travel back and forth to England for compassionate use.
“For three years I fought to save my daughter‘s life and along the way I’ve discovered just how difficult it is for American patients to access promising investigational treatments - even when those treatments were developed right here in their own country.
We need to ask some very serious questions about the barriers facing smaller biotechnology companies, the influence of the pharmaceutical industry, and why patients are left waiting while promising treatments navigate years of regulatory hurdles…
…You signed right-to-try into law and I tremendously appreciate what that legislation was intended to accomplish, but I’ve learned firsthand that having the right to request a treatment doesn’t necessarily mean a patient can actually obtain it…
An American family shouldn’t have to cross an ocean to receive a promising cancer treatment developed by American scientists…”
— @HollensbeAmanda
The Dapper DO retweeted
$NWBO 𝗗𝗖𝗩𝗮𝘅-𝗟: 𝗡𝗛𝗦𝗕𝗧 𝗖𝗢𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 𝗔𝗥𝗘 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘. 𝗖𝗨𝗥𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗔𝗖𝗖𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗥𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟 𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗔𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗢𝗩𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗢𝗚𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗥.
I contacted NHSBT directly to clarify what is operational, how patients enter the pathway, and what the collaboration is intended to support.
Their response confirms:
“Yes, the service is currently live and collections have already begun.”
𝗟𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗢𝘅𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻. DCVax-L patient collections through NHSBT are happening now.
𝗕𝗢𝗧𝗛 𝗕𝗘𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗘 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗔𝗙𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗩𝗔𝗟
I specifically asked whether the collaboration supports existing compassionate-use/unlicensed treatment arrangements, preparation for commercial rollout following MHRA marketing authorisation, or both.
The answer:
“Both.”
That establishes the purpose of this infrastructure: serving patients under current access arrangements while preparing to support commercial use following an approval.
𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗔𝗡𝗦𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗜𝗦 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗕𝗔𝗕𝗟𝗘 𝗕𝗘𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗞𝗘𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗔𝗨𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡
NHSBT’s exact wording:
“Expansion is probable in advance of marketing authorisation.”
Additional sites and potential start dates are already being negotiated. NHSBT said these details can be shared once confirmed.
This means network development can progress before a regulatory decision. Leeds and Oxford are the two locations confirmed operational today; further locations are being actively discussed.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗖𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗦𝗜𝗚𝗡𝗜𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗘
NWBO and Advent already have functioning collection services within established NHSBT clinical infrastructure. Additional locations would extend that pathway geographically, connecting more patients with an essential step in personalised vaccine production.
Current patient access, operational experience and preparation for broader commercial use are developing together.
The email establishes a live service and an active expansion process. DCVax-specific annual collection capacity and manufacturing throughput were not provided.
𝗔 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗧𝗘 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘𝗙𝗥𝗔𝗠𝗘 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗥𝗘𝗙𝗘𝗥𝗥𝗔𝗟 𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗧𝗘
NHSBT says it can usually accommodate a patient within 𝟮 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝘀.
The referral pathway is:
𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 → 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 → 𝗡𝗛𝗦𝗕𝗧.
The consultant contacts Advent, which then makes the NHSBT referral. Physicians have an identified route into the collection service.
The two-week timeframe applies to NHSBT’s stage. Advent’s separate waiting time was not confirmed, so the complete schedule through assessment, manufacturing and treatment still needs clarification.
𝗛𝗢𝗪 𝗖𝗨𝗥𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗔𝗖𝗖𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗜𝗦 𝗙𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗗
NHSBT confirmed that patients currently self-fund treatment because it is not commissioned by NHS England.
NHSBT is delivering services within that pathway. Its participation does not establish NHS-funded treatment. Patient charges and NHSBT’s financial terms were not disclosed.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 “𝗔𝗟𝗟 𝗦𝗢𝗟𝗜𝗗 𝗧𝗨𝗠𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗦” 𝗤𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡
My question about this wording, current patient eligibility and its relationship to the MHRA application was referred to Simon Cliffe for clarification.
Her reply did not establish the scope of current eligibility across tumour types or a future approved indication.
𝗜 𝗛𝗔𝗩𝗘 𝗔𝗟𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗬 𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗔 𝗙𝗢𝗟𝗟𝗢𝗪-𝗨𝗣
I am a physician and independent patient advocate. I do not work for NWBO or Advent. I am receiving substantial enquiries from patients and families, including people in the United States interested in UK access.
I have sent another email asking for:
• The appropriate Advent contact and a coordinator for the complete pathway.
• Whether US physicians can initiate referrals directly or patients first need a UK consultant.
• When NHSBT’s two-week timeframe begins, plus separate assessment and manufacturing waiting times.
• Whether eligibility, tumour-tissue suitability, costs and appointments can be confirmed before international travel, and how many UK visits are required.
• A written referral checklist that can be shared with patients and their physicians.
Jemima also offered a call, which I welcomed in my reply. My aim is to help patients and their doctors understand the complete process and coordinate access to this operating service.
Source: written correspondence with Jemima Churchhouse, Service Development Manager, NHSBT Therapeutic Apheresis Services, 12 October 2026.
#DCVax #GBM #CancerImmunotherapy #UKLifeSciences #DCVaxForBraelyn
Out of respect for the person who took the time to respond, I’m keeping direct screenshots of the email off X. I’m sharing the substantive information provided and am awaiting a response to my follow-up questions. I’ll share further clarification when I receive it.
$NWBO #DCVax #DCVaxForBraelyn #GBM #SolidTumors #CancerVaccines
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗡𝗛𝗦 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗧𝗢 𝗗𝗖𝗩𝗮𝘅 𝗜𝗦 𝗔𝗟𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗬 𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚
A manufacturing bottleneck that affected patients now has a named NHS operating partner.
On April 21, Northwest reported difficulty obtaining timely leukapheresis appointments for its UK compassionate-use programme. Patients could deteriorate while waiting for the white-cell collection needed to manufacture treatment. The company announced a dedicated clinic at the London Welbeck Hospital to address that constraint.
On October 8, NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) confirmed that its teams were collecting cells and providing specialist processing and handling for DCVax-L. The collaboration initially involves Leeds and Oxford, follows months of joint work and includes exploration of expansion to further NHSBT locations. Its Cellular and Molecular Therapies service has also acknowledged the contribution of its Stem Cell Processing Laboratories, naming Advent and Northwest.
For a therapy made from a patient’s own material, access to collection is part of access to treatment.
𝗔𝗡 𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗙𝗜𝗘𝗗 𝗕𝗢𝗧𝗧𝗟𝗘𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗞 𝗡𝗢𝗪 𝗛𝗔𝗦 𝗔𝗡 𝗡𝗛𝗦 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗗𝗨𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗡𝗘𝗥
NHSBT brings established expertise and facilities to the beginning of the production pathway. Its apheresis network spans ten English cities, with Leeds and Oxford named in this collaboration. Extending that starting model would give more patients a route into manufacture through existing services.
Personalised manufacture can fit inside care a patient is already receiving. In the phase III programme, the batch was produced during postoperative chemoradiotherapy and stored for later dosing. The April release identified an earlier bottleneck: obtaining the collection appointment needed to start that process. NHSBT adds capacity at precisely that entry point. Its practical value begins with getting the patient’s cells into the planned treatment sequence.
Properly authorised compassionate treatment can proceed before marketing approval through the applicable UK unlicensed-medicine arrangements. Advent holds a Specials licence for cell therapy products at Sawston. Northwest reported patient manufacture there from Q1 2022, following Specials and trial licences obtained in late 2021.
Access is assessed through the treating team, with individual arrangements for supply and funding. Marketing authorisation and routine NHS commissioning are separate decisions. The NHSBT partnership strengthens the production support needed for treatment plans that can be made now.
𝗡𝗢𝗪 𝗣𝗨𝗧 𝗢𝗖𝗧𝗢𝗕𝗘𝗥 𝟲 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗞 𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗢 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘
Two days before the production announcement, the conference programme placed the NHS Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad (CVLP) at 12:35 and Bosch’s personalised, multi-target immunotherapy keynote at 12:55.
The sequence brought the trial-access framework and the cellular platform before the same oncology audience, while a separate NHS operating relationship was already being developed.
CVLP’s protocol covers personalised cancer-vaccine trials requiring biological samples for manufacture and accommodates multiple cancer types, trials and partners. A DCVax-L trial proposal fits that category. CVLP can identify and refer patients into accepted studies; NHSBT can support collection and handling; specialist manufacture can supply the product. Formal DCVax participation in CVLP remains unannounced.
The October 8 agreement gives the conference positioning operational substance: a named NHS organisation is already doing essential work in the production pathway.
𝗙𝗢𝗟𝗟𝗢𝗪 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗧𝗪𝗢 𝗜𝗡𝗣𝗨𝗧𝗦
DCVax-L begins with tumour material obtained during surgery and monocytes collected from the patient’s blood.
The tumour supplies the antigen repertoire. The monocytes supply the cells developed into dendritic cells outside the body. Manufacturing brings the two together, preparing an antigen-presenting cell carrying information from that patient’s cancer.
The incoming material has a demanding journey. Northwest’s annual report describes fresh tissue and cells that must reach manufacturing within a defined window, in usable condition. Chain of identity keeps the material linked to its patient; chain of custody records the handoffs.
NHSBT’s announced contribution is collection and cellular handling. Advent supplies specialist manufacturing at Sawston. Every part has to work for the patient-specific batch to reach treatment.
𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗨𝗙𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗥𝗨𝗡 𝗖𝗔𝗡 𝗦𝗨𝗣𝗣𝗢𝗥𝗧 𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗬 𝗩𝗜𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗦
The published phase III process produced individual frozen doses from one patient-specific batch. A full batch supplied ten doses on the trial’s schedule.
That is a major logistical advantage. Repeat treatment need not require a new operation, a new collection and a new manufacturing run before every injection. The initial production effort creates a supply for later visits.
The company and Bosch describe about eight days for DCVax-L manufacture, followed by quality and release testing. In the phase III programme, production took place during postoperative chemoradiotherapy. Personalised manufacture was integrated into the existing treatment sequence.
Cryogenic storage then separates the production date from the treatment date, subject to validated stability and handling. The next dose can already be made when the next visit is due.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗧 𝗝𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗬 𝗜𝗦 𝗕𝗜𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗚𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗟
The released dose is delivered frozen and prepared for an intradermal injection into the upper-arm skin.
The purpose is an immune encounter. Dendritic cells can migrate towards draining lymph nodes, present antigen and help organise tumour-directed T-cell activity. Antigen recognition, costimulation and appropriate cytokine instruction work together. Activated helper T cells can reinforce receptive dendritic cells through CD40L–CD40 licensing.
This explains why a living-cell product needs more than correct labelling and transport. The cells must retain the function needed to perform their part of the response. Bosch’s slides connect the argument to human observations: antigen display, expanded T-cell clones and T cells present in glioblastoma (GBM) tissue after upper-arm vaccination.
The logistics protect the biological work the treatment is intended to do.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗟 𝗙𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗪𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗗𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗟𝗢𝗣𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧
The published phase III externally controlled analysis provides the principal clinical foundation for DCVax-L development. In newly diagnosed GBM, median overall survival from randomisation was 19.3 months with DCVax-L versus 16.5 months in the external controls; estimated five-year survival was 13.0% versus 5.7%. In recurrent GBM, the median comparison was 13.2 versus 7.8 months from recurrence.
An organised treatment service can also make future evidence stronger. Manufacturing records identify which product a patient received. Consented clinical follow-up records what happened afterwards. Connecting them prospectively would make compassionate-use experience more useful for subsequent development.
𝗔𝗗𝗩𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗢𝗪𝗡𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗧𝗘𝗖𝗛𝗡𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗚𝗬 𝗧𝗢 𝗜𝗧𝗦 𝗘𝗫𝗘𝗖𝗨𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡
Northwest acquired all of Advent on October 24, 2025. Advent brought the organisation responsible for manufacturing, quality and release testing, storage, distribution and product-development work into the group.
Northwest already owned Flaskworks. Owning the automation technology and the manufacturing organisation puts the engineering and its implementation under one corporate owner. Staffing, facility investment, process changes and clinical supply can be coordinated inside that group.
The closing release explicitly connected this integration to additional applications, next-generation technologies and what Linda Powers called a “dominant franchise.” The repeatable asset is an organisation that can turn process knowledge into controlled production. That is why Advent matters beyond one site or one indication.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗙𝗙𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗦𝗛𝗢𝗪𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗞 𝗕𝗘𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗠
As of October 9, Advent was recruiting a Biobank Technician for its biological-sample storage services. The advert seeks biobank experience under good manufacturing practice (GMP), with cryogenic storage, laboratory information management systems (LabWare/LIMS) and regulatory audits among the desired skills. It also includes covering for the Biobank lead. Applications go directly to Advent by email.
Robert Ridenour has separately announced that he is starting as Northwest’s Director of Information Technology. That is a role at the parent company, distinct from Advent’s vacancy.
The connection is information continuity. Scaling an autologous therapy multiplies patient-specific identities as well as batches. The patient, the biological material and the records must remain linked through collection, processing, manufacture, storage and delivery.
The biobank role concerns Advent’s general storage business. Its relevance to this analysis is the operating discipline it makes visible: living material must arrive in usable condition with a trustworthy record of whose material it is and how it has been handled.
𝗘𝗗𝗘𝗡 𝗔𝗗𝗗𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗘𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗡𝗘𝗫𝗧 𝗖𝗔𝗣𝗔𝗖𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗜𝗡𝗧
The Flaskworks team documented the EDEN name in a 2018 research paper. Northwest’s later DCVax-L automation programme aims to reproduce the relevant characteristics of the established product through a closed process. Its February 2024 update reported substantially comparable composition, function, purity and dose yield from the optimised prototype.
The proposed gain is more separate patient batches supported by the same laboratory space and specialist workforce, with fewer manual steps. Each patient’s material remains separate.
Deployment requires equipment qualification, process validation, comparability and acceptance for the intended manufacturing use. The 2025 annual report still described development and stated that the systems had not operated at commercial scale. Those steps establish the distinction between demonstrated prototype performance and accepted production capacity.
Existing manufacture already supports current supply. In the supplied December 2025 meeting transcript, management said it would “anticipate launching, with just the two existing Grade B suites,” with Grade C intended to add capacity. Eden’s significance is the capacity and economics of reproducing the product as the service grows.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗜𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝗦𝗛𝗢𝗪 𝗔 𝗪𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗖𝗔𝗣𝗔𝗖𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗚𝗬
The June 2026 quarterly report describes several ways to expand the same pathway: obtain collection capacity through existing facilities without capital expenditure, explore additional tumour-lysate processing locations, discuss a second UK production operation and pursue grant funding for Sawston.
Each addresses a different constraint. More collection appointments supply starting material. Additional processing capability can release central capacity. Automation targets the labour and space required for manufacture.
The UK already has a relevant operating precedent. Autolus established company-controlled production inside Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult’s Stevenage centre, with Innovate UK project support, its own process and its own recruited team. Catapult also operates Braintree facilities. Northwest has not identified either as its second-site partner; its disclosed grant pursuit concerns Sawston.
NHSBT has four licensed advanced-cell manufacturing laboratories and expertise in development, technology transfer, manufacture, release, storage and logistics. Its reference to exploring broader laboratory collaboration therefore reaches well beyond the collection appointment.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗔𝗣𝗔𝗕𝗜𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗖𝗔𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗩𝗘𝗟
The US disclosures show how that programme can expand. In late 2025, Northwest described site selection and recruitment for its in-licensed technologies. By June 2026 it reported completed DCVax-L technology transfer, engineering runs and validation at a US company. It was also considering a parallel transfer there for the Kalinski products while separate lease negotiations continued.
A company can carry process knowledge, specifications, training and quality oversight into qualified facilities without constructing and owning every building. Each product and site needs its own validation and permissions.
The non-binding SPIMACO memorandum adds a named regional route: discussions cover DCVax-L approval, supply and commercialisation in Saudi Arabia, with separately negotiated localisation and technology transfer. It starts with GBM and allows mutually agreed expansion.
This connects Advent, NHSBT and the Catapult precedent: retain control of the work that makes a personalised therapy reproducible, then use established infrastructure to extend the programme.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗠 𝗢𝗣𝗣𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗘𝗫𝗧𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗦 𝗕𝗘𝗬𝗢𝗡𝗗 𝗚𝗕𝗠
Bosch’s overview describes 16 tumour types treated in DCVax clinical trials, plus additional compassionate-use cases. The presentation includes ovarian-cancer observations and Direct’s phase I programme in 40 patients across 13 tumour types.
DCVax-L receives tumour material obtained during surgery. Direct addresses inoperable tumours by placing prepared cells into tumour tissue to acquire antigen there. They connect the patient’s cancer to the presenting cell at different points.
One of Bosch’s Direct slides follows five lesions in a clear-cell sarcoma patient after injection into only one lesion. Several uninjected lesions also fell below their screening measurements. The significance is activity beyond the injection site: an individual clinical observation supporting further investigation of systemic immune effects from local treatment.
Advent also solved a documented manufacturing problem for Direct after an earlier contractor failed to meet specification. Northwest reported completion of its Sawston transfer programme in 2025. Bosch describes Direct manufacture as closed and automated; this is distinct from proving deployment of the Eden implementation for L. The next clinical programme still requires its own authorisation, sites and funding.
The broader development opportunity is to combine complete compassionate-use records, prospective cancer cohorts and reliable supply to establish benefit in defined populations. Those data can support applications for additional indications.
There is a public-funding precedent: the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) funded ImmunoTACE, a different dendritic-cell vaccine programme in liver cancer. NHS England funds CVLP. NIHR’s Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation (EME) researcher-led call is open as of October 9, with outline applications due November 25, 2026. An eligible team can develop a defined proposal this autumn, with a sponsor, supply arrangements and a budget.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗘𝗡𝗦𝗘𝗗 𝗧𝗘𝗖𝗛𝗡𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗚𝗜𝗘𝗦 𝗚𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗧𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗘 𝗧𝗢 𝗗𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗟𝗢𝗣
The Roswell Park and Pittsburgh portfolios extend the programme through enhanced dendritic-cell preparations, conditioning approaches and combination strategies. The Roswell licence includes antigen-loaded dendritic-cell therapies and versions intended to acquire antigen after intratumoral administration.
The biological task is coordinated immune instruction. The presenting cell needs suitable antigen information, the functional signals to direct a cellular response, and a route into the relevant immune encounter. Type-1-polarized preparations aim to preserve that instructional capacity. This is more than a question of how much cytokine a cell produces.
Bosch and Bhandary’s New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS) work on dendritic cells prepared for intratumoral injection shows why controlled preparation matters. Different combinations changed cytokine and migration-related profiles; the summary reported additive, complementary and antagonistic effects. Those laboratory findings guide clinical development of candidate preparations.
The September 2025 filing explicitly connects the licensed portfolios to new Direct trial designs involving conditioning, accompanying agents and additional administration routes. The company is developing a broader treatment programme around the cellular therapy.
𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗛𝗔𝗦 𝗔 𝗣𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗣𝗨𝗥𝗣𝗢𝗦𝗘 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗔 𝗪𝗜𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗗𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗟𝗢𝗣𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗣𝗔𝗧𝗛
The strategic asset is a controlled treatment process that can be repeated around different patients’ biological material.
NHSBT strengthens the route into production. Advent places manufacturing execution inside Northwest. Eden targets the next capacity step, and the licensed technologies extend the clinical-development programme. Existing compassionate supply gives that infrastructure a present purpose.
The October 6 conference placed the platform beside a national access framework. The October 8 announcement showed NHS teams already supporting its production. The opportunity is to extend that operating capability, generate the evidence for additional uses and secure the corresponding access and funding decisions.
The treatment is personal. The service has to be dependable at every handoff. That is the importance of the NHS connection.
Sources
NHSBT collaboration: prnewswire.com/news-releases…
April capacity statement: nwbio.com/northwest-biothera…
Bosch presentation: nwbio.com/wp-content/uploads…
CVLP: southampton.ac.uk/ctu/cancer…
MHRA access guidance: gov.uk/guidance/advanced-the…
NIHR funding call: nihr.ac.uk/funding/eme-progr…
Advent acquisition: nwbio.com/northwest-biothera…
June 2026 quarterly filing: sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/…
Autolus precedent: ct.catapult.org.uk/resources…
Licensed portfolio: nwbio.com/northwest-biothera…
NYAS presentation: nwbio.com/wp-content/uploads…
September 2025 filing: sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/…
Historical EDEN publication: doi.org/10.18609/cgti.2018.1…
Patient manufacture at Sawston: nwbio.com/northwest-biothera…
Advent employer recruitment: uk.linkedin.com/company/adve…
Saudi memorandum: nwbio.com/northwest-biothera…
Phase III publication: jamanetwork.com/journals/jam…
Direct clinical report: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3001…
2025 annual report: sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/…
December 2025 management discussion: supplied transcript; official meeting date verified at nwbio.com/annual-shareholder…
IT appointment: Robert Ridenour’s LinkedIn announcement, reproduced in the accompanying image; profile at linkedin.com/in/robertrideno…
The Dapper DO retweeted
I have recently received a harsh personal attack...and my board members @immortabio have been contacted...by people complaining that I support $NWBO
You know what this means?
WAR
I shall amplify my posts supporting the most advanced and promising dendritic cell technology !
Imagine what good we could do for the United States and the world if just one loud and proud mom like @HollensbeAmanda ends up getting the President’s ear and approval for #NWBO!
Now THIS is a trend on X that I could get used to seeing! Let’s get #DCVaxForBraelyn trending around the world and show everyone what #NWBO can do for every cancer patient! Congratulations, Amanda and Braelyn!
I have been waiting almost 3 years to write these words:
NO EVIDENCE OF DISEASE. 🙏❤️
Today we met with Braelyn’s neurosurgeon, Dr. Linda Liau at UCLA (telehealth).
When our local radiologist read Braelyn’s August 28 MRI as “no evidence of disease recurrence,” we were thrilled—but I was afraid to fully exhale.
I knew Dr. Liau and the UCLA tumor board would scrutinize every millimeter of those images.
What if they saw something the local radiologist missed?
Today, Dr. Liau told us that she and the tumor board had thoroughly reviewed Braelyn’s MRI.
They were amazed.
There is NO VISIBLE TUMOR.
Even the ~10% Dr. Liau had to leave behind during surgery because of its intimate involvement with critical structures is no longer visible.
She emphasized how amazed and pleased the entire tumor board was by such a complete response at this point.
Her assessment: the prior radiation and the ongoing DCVax appear to be working very well.
Their recommendation after also reviewing the Keytruda regimen Braelyn recently started?
KEEP DOING WHAT SHE’S DOING.
😭🙏
First and foremost, we give ALL thanks and glory to God.
People all over the world have prayed for this girl. I cannot begin to express how humbled and grateful we are.
But tonight I also cannot stop thinking about how close Braelyn came to never having this opportunity.
Earlier this year, her tumor was enormous and growing rapidly.
We sought help from multiple surgeons—including at prestigious institutions.
We were told further surgery was too risky.
We were offered the same old options: chemotherapy and photon radiation that would affect most of her brain, given the size of her tumor.
Her tumor is MGMT-unmethylated, so for Braelyn, chemo was all risk with little to no benefit.
And then a stranger I met here on X changed everything. @ThomasOwenMcCa1 connected us with Dr. Liau.
After reviewing Braelyn’s case, one of the first things she said was:
“This girl needs surgery right away.”
I told her we knew that. We just couldn’t find anyone willing to do it.
I asked if SHE would.
“If you can get her to me, I will do her surgery.”
We got Braelyn to UCLA.
Within two weeks, Dr. Liau operated and removed ~90% of a massive tumor spanning three lobes, stopping where continuing would risk critical structures.
And this time, her tumor tissue was PROPERLY PRESERVED.
That tissue was ultimately sent to England and used to manufacture Braelyn’s personalized DCVax vaccine.
She has now received 3 induction doses + her first booster.
And today?
The tumor that Dr. Liau had to leave behind is no longer visible on MRI.
Think about that.
And then think about what could have happened if we had simply accepted “there’s nothing else we can do.”
THIS is why I will not stop advocating for reform.
Patients should not have to find potentially life-saving treatment options accidentally through strangers on social media.
Patients should be told about legitimate investigational options when standard treatment offers little hope.
Patients undergoing tumor surgery should be informed BEFORE surgery about preservation of tissue that could potentially be used for personalized treatments.
And patients should have the right to make informed decisions about which risks they are willing to take.
Promising science means very little if the patients who need it cannot access it.
Braelyn is living proof of why access matters.
Tonight, though, advocacy can wait for just a moment.
Tonight I’m her mom.
And I finally get to say the words I have begged God to someday let me say:
NO EVIDENCE OF DISEASE.
Thank You, God.
Thank you, Dr. Liau.
Thank you to everyone who opened a door, donated, shared her story, fought for her and prayed for our girl.
There is always light, even in the darkest places.
Tonight that light is shining incredibly bright. ❤️🙏
#DCVaxForBraelyn #CureNotCovered
@greta
@kshaughnessy2
@andrewcaravello
In a world where our screens and feeds are filled with sadness, anger, or dread… there are shining beacons of happiness and success to look forward to. I could read about it all day and never grow tired. Go Braelyn! #NWBO #DCVaxForBraelyn
“No evidence of disease recurrence.”
I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of reading those words. ❤️
For more than three years, I have suffered from terrible scanxiety. Every MRI brings that familiar knot in my stomach—the fear that one scan could change everything.
I’m not sure that feeling will ever completely go away.
But this time feels different.
Braelyn’s MRI shows no evidence of disease recurrence.
After everything she has been through—multiple brain surgeries, radiation, and now DCVax—I’m finally allowing myself to feel like maybe, just maybe, we’ve turned a corner.
We know this journey isn’t over. We’ll keep watching. We’ll keep treating. We’ll keep doing everything we can.
But today?
No recurrence.
And those may be the most beautiful words I’ve read in a very long time. 🙏❤️
#DCvaxForBraelyn
The Dapper DO retweeted
This video stopped me in my tracks.
Kristen paired the words from my letters with images that tell the rest of the story — Braelyn immediately after brain surgery, receiving DCVax, exploring London between treatments, beginning her college classes, and finally back home surrounded by the people she loves.
That is what we are fighting for.
Not simply another scan. Not simply “more time.” We are fighting for her future — college, travel, family, laughter, ordinary days and all the milestones a 19-year-old should be able to dream about.
Thank you, Kristen, for taking our story and showing so beautifully what is actually at stake when families ask regulators for urgency.
$NWBO
Amanda Hollensbe is fighting to save her daughter Braelyn’s life.
She wrote this letter to the UK Prime Minister and the Chief Executive of the MHRA
Braelyn spent much of the summer in London so she could get her first three doses of DCVax - a non-toxic glioblastoma vaccine made by an American company.
A promising treatment U.S. regulators still won’t approve.
The data is there.
10-and 20-year + glioblastoma survivors exist.
The UK gave her a chance.
Regulators everywhere are still moving like they have all the time in the world.
Glioblastoma patients don’t.
Video #11 (other videos are in this thread. Please repost)
@HollensbeAmanda @gr197667 @andrewcaravello @MHRAgovuk @RobertKennedyJr
I can’t help but be frustrated for #NWBO as it seems like the big players get the spotlight, attention, and reaction for what we know the company has already achieved. I am happy for patients regardless, and I still believe that DC-Vax will have its day. The data and patients speak for themselves. If anything, this is an example of how much our investment will flourish once approval comes. #HoldTheLine
We are so happy for you! Congratulations on obtaining #DCVaxforBraelyn! May she guide the way for countless others to come in eradicating cancer!
In the waiting room. About to meet Dr. Ashkan in person, then Braelyn gets her 1st DCvax injection! Monumental day!!!
#DCvaxForBraelyn
$NWBO
