Left to right: : Dr Nancy Zaarour, Dr César López-Camacho, Professor Ahmed Ashour Ahmed and Ms Sbba Siddique ( Director of Asian Star Radio, UK)
Ovarian cancer remains a devastating global health challenge: each year, over 300,000 women are diagnosed, and nearly 200,000 lives are lost, largely because the disease is detected at a late stage. Women carrying inherited genetic changes face a significantly elevated lifetime risk, over 40%, and current preventive strategies often require invasive surgery that compromises fertility. These limitations underscore an urgent need for non-surgical preventive options, and vaccines could offer a groundbreaking solution.
The award was awarded by Ovarian Cancer Action in August 2025. This three-year funded programme, “Developing a vaccine to prevent ovarian cancer: Optimising the vehicle”, will harness cutting-edge science to design and evaluate vaccine candidates targeting tumour-associated antigens, together with mRNA-based technologies and using Lipid Nanoparticle as delivery platform. In particular, this innitiave will encompass patient and public involvement throughout. The awarded funding will support vaccine design, preclinical evaluation, and the development of optimal delivery strategies, laying the foundation for eventual clinical trials.
The project is led by a multidisciplinary Oxford team:
- Lead Applicant: Professor Ahmed Ashour Ahmed, Professor of Gynaecological Oncology, University of Oxford, and Director of the Ovarian Cancer Cell Laboratory at the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine.
- Co-Lead Applicant: Dr César López-Camacho, Group Leader and Jenner Investigator at the Jenner Institute, who leads the mRNA Technology Programme.
- Co-Investigator: Dr Nancy Zaarour, Elman Poole Ovarian Cancer Research Fellow, Nuffield Department of Women’s & Reproductive Health, University of Oxford.
Professor Ahmed said:
“This award gives us the opportunity to address one of the most urgent challenges in women’s health. Ovarian cancer remains the most lethal gynaecological cancer, and we urgently need new ways of preventing it. A vaccine approach could be transformative.”
Dr López-Camacho added:
“The mRNA vaccine platform offers unique flexibility and precision in targeting tumour-associated antigens. We are excited to bring this technology into ovarian cancer prevention, building on the Jenner Institute’s strengths in mRNA vaccine design and translational immunology.”
Dr Zaarour commented:
“Integrating laboratory discoveries with patient-centred insights is at the heart of this programme. OvarianVax represents a unique opportunity to translate innovation into meaningful impact for women at risk of ovarian cancer.”
The new award from Ovarian Cancer Action (OCA) builds on an earlier programme funded by Cancer Research UK (CRUK) and awarded to Prof. Ahmed Ashour Ahmed, which supported the first phase of OvarianVax. That initial investment enabled Oxford researchers to establish the scientific foundations for an ovarian cancer vaccine. This next stage also builds on complementary funding secured by Dr César López-Camacho through the NIHR Capital Fund and the John Fell Fund Capital Award, which established key infrastructure and capabilities for mRNA vaccine development at Oxford. With OCA’s support, the team will now move to the next stage: optimising vaccine delivery and advancing the programme towards future clinical translation.