Archive · 3 Aug 2026
First Patient Receives Groundbreaking Immune Cell Cancer Therapy
Scientists have made a new kind of cancer medicine that uses special cells from healthy donors.
These cells are changed in a lab so they can find and attack cancer cells that have a protein called MAGE‑A4.
The first person to get this medicine is a woman named Tracy who has ovarian cancer.
She got the treatment in Manchester, England.
The doctors are checking if it is safe and how much to give.
If it works well, it could help many more people get fast and cheaper cancer treatment.
First human use of ZI‑MA4‑1, an off‑the‑shelf NK‑cell therapy, at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester.
58‑year‑old Tracy Tomlinson, with advanced ovarian cancer, is the first recipient after other treatments failed.
ZI‑MA4‑1 targets the MAGE‑A4 protein on several cancers, aiming for precise immune attack with fewer side effects.
The therapy uses donor‑derived cells pre‑engineered and stored, potentially reducing cost, wait times and increasing accessibility.
Phase 1 trial focuses on safety, dosing and cell behavior; effectiveness will be tested in later phases.
- Who
- Tracy Tomlinson, a 58‑year‑old woman with advanced ovarian cancer
- What
- First human administration of the experimental immune‑cell therapy ZI‑MA4‑1
- When
- 2024
- Where
- The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, United Kingdom
- Why
- To evaluate safety, dosing and cell behavior of a donor‑derived, off‑the‑shelf NK‑cell therapy targeting MAGE‑A4
- First patient
- Tracy Tomlinson
- Treatment name
- ZI-MA4-1
- Trial phase
- Phase 1
- Location
- The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, UK
- Target protein
- MAGE‑A4
- Patient age
- 58