Professor Judith Bliss

The Cancer Research UK funded Clinical Trials & Statistics Unit (ICR-CTSU) provides the scientific leadership and operational management to develop, conduct and report high quality, innovative randomised trials, with integrated translational and psychosocial research. ICR-CTSU is an NCRI Accredited and UKCRC Registered Clinical Trials Unit with an established track record. Recently published trials have led directly to changes in clinical practice. Our research work is focussed in selected clinical and therapeutic areas; with Professor Bliss leading the ICR-CTSU Breast and Melanoma Trials Team undertaking trials of systemic therapies, radiotherapy and surgical techniques.

The aims of the research are to continue to develop, conduct and report high quality trials, and associated research, of scientific importance and which will impact directly on clinical practice within the NHS and internationally. Building on past successes, and recognising the changing national and international priorities for clinical trials, our programme of randomised trials have the following focus:

Early breast cancer – systemic therapy

• The advent of UK based peri-operative trials
• International trials for targeted treatments – what can the UK offer?
• Refining adjuvant chemotherapy – where do we go next?

Advanced breast cancer – systemic therapy

• Development of targeted therapies

Early breast cancer – radiotherapy

• The limits of hypofractionation
• Tailoring radiotherapy

Surgical trials and other cancer sites

• Complex surgical interventions
• Head and neck cancer

Fundamental to both the scientific hypothesis, and to the conduct of these trials, is the targeting of treatments towards patients with the most potential for therapeutic gain. In addition to evaluation of therapeutic outcome, scientific output will be maximised by integrated biomarker directed translational research; patient assessed quality of life & symptom evaluation; statistical and trials methodology research.

Judith Bliss is Director of the Cancer Research UK funded Clinical Trials & Statistics Unit (ICR-CTSU) and Deputy Head of the Division of Clinical Studies.  She is a medical statistician with interests in both cancer clinical trials and epidemiology, particularly in striving to ensure the design of trials are sufficiently robust to provide both the safety and efficacy results required to directly influence routine clinical practice.

The focus of her more recent work involves trials aimed at maximising benefit in the treatment of breast cancer. This includes work comparing different chemotherapeutic agents and different radiotherapy schedules as well as optimising the scheduling of endocrine therapy. She collaborates with clinical coordinators and investigators located in many countries throughout Europe and elsewhere, including members of the International Collaborative Cancer Group and the Breast International Group. She is actively engaged in research relating to the problems associated with capturing long term follow up and outcome data for trial patients and is co-chair of a Breast International Group and North American Breast Cancer Group Taskforce on Survivorship.

Professionally trained as a medical statistician (MSc in Medical Statistics & Information Technology from the University of Leicester and Fellow of the UK Royal Statistical Society), her statistical and trial management contribution to clinical trials, particularly in breast cancer, was recognised in 2006 with the conferment of the title of Professor in Clinical Trials  (University of London). As Director of a Clinical Trials Unit accredited by UK National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) and registered by UK Clinical Research Collaboration (UKCRC) she is actively involved in the strategic development of the clinical trials research framework in the UK. 

She is a member of the Operational Steering Group of the National Cancer Research Network and is a member of the National Cancer Information Network (NCIN) Site Specific Reference Group for Breast Cancer. Her position in the UK breast cancer research field is evidenced by continued membership of the National Clinical Research Institute (NCRI) Breast Clinical Studies Group and recent appointment as Vice-Chair of the UK Breast Intergroup. Internationally, she is a member of the Steering Committee for the Early Breast Cancer Trialists Collaborative Group (EBCTCG) and an active member of the Aromatase Inhibitor Overview Group (AIOG).