Kevin Harrington
Team Leader
Targeted Therapy
The Institute Of Cancer Research
United Kingdom
Biography
Professor Kevin Harrington specialises in developing new treatments using biologically targeted agents (such as viruses, antibodies and small molecules) that selectively destroy cancer cells. He is Professor of Biological Cancer Therapies at The Institute of Cancer Research and an honorary consultant oncologist at The Royal Marsden. Professor Harrington was appointed as Joint Head of the ICR’s Division of Radiotherapy and Imaging in 2013. Professor Harrington studied medicine at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, and began focusing on head and neck cancer while a PhD student at Hammersmith Hospital. He completed postdoctoral research in molecular medicine at the Mayo Clinic, Minnesota, before joining the ICR in 2001 as Team Leader in Targeted Therapy within the Section of Cell and Molecular Biology.
Research Interest
He is currently working with a range of viruses (reovirus, herpes simplex virus, vaccinia virus, coxsackie A21 virus) that are able to grow in – and kill – cancerous, but not normal, cells. Some of these so-called oncolytic viruses have naturally evolved to grow preferentially in cancer cells because of the cells’ specific genetic defects, while others have been genetically engineered to grow selectively in cancer cells. Professor Harrington hopes new treatments using these viruses will improve patients’ cure rates and have fewer side-effects than current therapies. The virus therapies under development are generally given in combination with standard anti-cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Professor Harrington’s research has shown that some viruses can make cancer cells more sensitive to radiation, while the radiation may also boost the effect of some viruses on cancer cells.
Publications
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Patel, R., Barker, H.E., Kyula, J., McLaughlin, M., Dillon, M.T., Schick, U., Hafsi, H., Thompson, A., Khoo, V., Harrington, K., et al. (2017). An orally bioavailable Chkl inhibitor, CCT244747, sensitizes bladder and head and neck cancer cell lines to radiation. Radiotherapy and oncology, Vol.122(3), pp. 470-475.
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Wong, K.H., Kuciejewska, A., Sharabiani, M.T., Ng-Cheng-Hin, B., Hoy, S., Hurley, T., Rydon, J., Grove, L., Santos, A., Ryugenji, M., et al. (2017). A randomised controlled trial of Caphosol mouthwash in management of radiation-induced mucositis in head and neck cancer. Radiotherapy and oncology, Vol.122(2), pp. 207-211.
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Ilett, E., Kottke, T., Thompson, J., Rajani, K., Zaidi, S., Evgin, L., Coffey, M., Ralph, C., Diaz, R., Pandha, H., et al. (2017). Prime-boost using separate oncolytic viruses in combination with checkpoint blockade improves anti-tumour therapy. Gene therapy, Vol.24(1), pp. 21-30.
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Gujral, D.M., Long, M., Roe, J.W., Harrington, K.J. & Nutting, C.M. (2017). Standardisation of Target Volume Delineation for Carotid-sparing Intensity-modulated Radiotherapy in Early Glottis Cancer. Clinical oncology, Vol.29(1), pp. 42-50
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Sundar, R., Valeri, N., Harrington, K.J. & Yap, T.A. (2017). Combining Molecularly Targeted Agents: Is More Always Better?. Clinical cancer research, Vol.23(5), pp. 1123-1125.
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Dillon, M.T., Barker, H.E., Pedersen, M., Hafsi, H., Bhide, S.A., Newbold, K.L., Nutting, C.M., McLaughlin, M. & Harrington, K.J. (2017). Radiosensitization by the ATR Inhibitor AZD6738 through Generation of Acentric Micronuclei. Molecular cancer therapeutics, Vol.16(1), pp. 25-34
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Panek, R., Welsh, L., Baker, L.C., Schmidt, M.A., Wong, K.H., Riddell, A.M., Koh, D.-., Dunlop, A., Mcquaid, D., d’Arcy, J.A., et al. (2017). Noninvasive Imaging of Cycling Hypoxia in Head and Neck Cancer Using Intrinsic Susceptibility MRI. Clinical cancer research, Vol.23(15), pp. 4233-4241.
