New BBC documentary offers rare insight into clinical trials at Guy’s

A new documentary about experimental cancer medicine trials at Guy’s Hospital will air on BBC Radio 4 later this month.

“Floor 15” goes behind the scenes of the NIHR Clinical Research Facility’s Phase 1 Unit at Guy’s, where patients take part in clinical trials of new therapies, including for treatments never tested on humans before.

With unprecedented access to the unit, the one-off programme tells the stories of four patients with advanced cancer, their families and the staff caring for them. Recorded over the past year, it highlights the innovative new therapies being developed and captures the experiences of those patients with few remaining treatment options.

Floor 15 is narrated by the BBC's Medical Editor Fergus Walsh and explains the groundbreaking science that could offer patients a chance of living longer with their disease. The sensitive and moving documentary was produced by Ride Productions.

James Spicer, a consultant in medical oncology at Guy’s and St Thomas’ and Professor of Experimental Cancer Medicine at King’s College London, leads the unit. He said:

“These trials are at the cutting edge of clinical research and none of the progress being made would be possible without courageous patients who agree to take part. As well as hoping to live longer, many tell us they want to help others in the future, and I am in awe of them.

“In cancer and many other diseases, research is vital to improve patient care, and in this hospital we try to offer trial participation to as many patients as possible. We hope that this documentary will improve public understanding of clinical trials and help to demystify the subject for patients.

“Although this programme’s main focus is the patients’ experience, I also want to pay tribute to my colleagues in the Clinical Research Facility who come to work every day determined to make our patients’ lives better.”

Halina Kierkuc, Producer at Ride Productions, said: “It has been a privilege to meet and share the stories of the patients we feature and the clinical teams who treat them. We hope this programme will help people understand what clinical trials involve – the challenges and the uncertainty of the outcomes. We celebrate Floor 15’s successes in developing new treatments for cancer but also explore the realities of taking part in an early phase trial.”

The NIHR Guy’s and St Thomas’ Clinical Research Facility runs 5 research units across the hospital sites. These purpose built facilities are staffed by teams with extensive clinical trials expertise who specialise in delivering early phase, experimental and high-risk studies. The Trust is a leading centre for research into advanced therapies, including cell and gene therapies.

Floor 15 will be broadcast at 8pm on Tuesday 28 July and repeated at 11am on Wednesday 29 July. It will then be available on BBC Sounds.