Cervical cancer survivor shines a light on research

A mum-of-two who was treated for cervical cancer is highlighting progress being made to beat the disease.

Sonia Dancer lost both her parents to cancer within months of each other. She was stunned when she was then diagnosed with the disease herself, just two weeks after her mum’s funeral.

Sonia, 47, from Fair Oak, was treated at University Hospital Southampton.

She is now using her experiences to help guide new research into better treatments. She does this by sharing her views with researchers at the University of Southampton’s Cancer Research UK Southampton Clinical Trials Unit (SCTU).

Surviving cancer

After experiencing months of unexplained bleeding, tests revealed Sonia had stage three cervical cancer. She required surgery, chemotherapy and two types of radiotherapy at UHS to beat it.

Now, Sonia is highlighting how progress made by Cancer Research UK and trials at the SCTU are giving hope to future generations, including her teenage daughter, Olivia.

“When I was diagnosed, everything in terms of cancer meant death in my family, after losing my dad to thyroid cancer and then my mum to breast cancer,” she said.

“So it was really difficult telling the children, who were just six and 10 at the time. But thankfully, I was able to receive treatments that were tough, but helped me get better.”

Giving back

Sonia’s way of ‘giving back’ to the research that helped save her life is by sharing her views as a cancer survivor. She does this as a patient representative, working with a team of researchers at the SCTU developing a new treatment for cervical cancer.

“Now, I’m not only reassured that my daughter will likely avoid going through what I went through thanks to having the HPV vaccine,” said Sonia, “I’m also a patient representative on a clinical trial for cervical cancer here in Southampton, which aims to save more lives.”

The Cancer Research UK funded CRAIN trial is testing a drug called tolinapant, alongside combined chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment, in the hope that it will improve survival.

The trial is run by the SCTU, with Dr Vicki McFarlane leading patient recruitment at UHS. It is led by Prof Peter Hoskin at the University of Manchester and the Christie NHS Foundation Trust.

The current standard of care in the UK is chemoradiotherapy. However, around half of patients will suffer long-term side effects from the treatment, and approximately half will see their disease come back. Sadly, over a third of patients will not survive for more than five years after diagnosis.

Cancer cells can adapt to avoid the normal cell death process called ‘apoptosis’. This means they continue to grow uncontrollably and cause a tumour.

Tolinapant has been shown to work by blocking the activity of certain proteins that help to keep cancer cells alive. These proteins are found at high levels in many types of cancer cells. Blocking the activity of these proteins can switch this cell death process back on.

Each participant on the CRAIN trial is given information that cancer survivors like Sonia have fed into, to ensure patients’ views are represented.

Sonia said: “The chemoradiotherapy treatment I received was very tiring and much of it took place simultaneously, so it was very full on. Having been through that, I was keen to represent the patient voice when this trial launched.

“The CRAIN trial is so important in improving the treatments we currently have and increasing survival. It’s great to know you are part of something that could help other patients.”

Protecting future generations

Around 3,300 people are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the UK each year. Almost all cases are caused by a type of human papillomavirus (HPV).

The HPV vaccine helps to prevent cervical cancer. It was first introduced for girls aged 12-13 in England in 2008. Since September 2019, the vaccine has also been available to boys of the same age.

Anyone who missed their vaccine can request it up to the age of 25 by talking to their GP, school nurse or school immunisation team. The vaccine is also available to men who have sex with men and some transgender people up to the age of 45 through sexual health and HIV clinics.

Sonia, who works at a secondary school, also shares her story with students who may feel wary of the vaccine. This means they can understand that if they protect themselves from HPV infection, they can prevent cell changes and reduce their risk of cancer.

When Sonia received a letter asking to give permission for her daughter, Olivia, to receive the vaccine, it was an instant ‘yes’ from them both.

Olivia, 14, said: “I had it in Year 8. Lots of my friends were nervous about having it done and were scared of needles, but I was much more relaxed because I knew I didn’t want to go through what my mum went through.

“For me, it was just a prick in the arm and that was it. It was no big deal, but it gives me a level of protection from the kind of illness I saw my nan, grandad and mum go through.”