Newcastle University

Roles and Responsibilities

Coordination of national paediatric clinical pharmacology studies (Children's Cancer and Leukaemia Group - CCLG)
Supervision of undergraduate, MRes and PhD student projects
Teaching (BSc Pharmacology; MRes Medical and Molecular Biosciences)
Carcinogen and Chemical Safety Officer - Northern Institute for Cancer Research

Qualifications

BSc Pharmacology (Hons), University of Liverpool

Ph.D. (Clinical Pharmacology), University of Liverpool

Previous Positions

2005 to 2010 - Academic Fellow, Northern Institute for Cancer Research, Newcastle University.

2001 to 2005 - Senior Research Associate, Northern Institute for Cancer Research, Newcastle University.

1998 to 2001 - Postdoctoral Research Associate, Cancer Research Unit, Newcastle University.

1996 to 1998 - Postdoctoral Fellow, Division of Experimental Medicine and Haematology/Oncology, Harvard Medical School.

Memberships

Member of the following organisations :-

- Children’s Cancer and Leukaemia Group (CCLG) (Pharmacology Subcommittee Chair)

- SIOP European Neuroblastoma Group (Pharmacology Subcommittee Chair)

- NCRI Teenagers and Young Adults CSG Biological Subgroup 

- EMA European Network of Paediatric Research (Enpr-EMA) Scientific Committee

- British Association for Cancer Research (BACR)

- American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)

- European Association for Cancer Research (EACR) 

Honours and Awards

Awards/achievements :-

BACR Mid-Career Fellowship (£2,000) – awarded to support a collaborative visit to the Tata Memorial Hospital, India (October, 2010)

AACR-Merck Scholar-in-Training Award ($1,400) – received at the 100th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research, Denver (April, 2009)

AACR-GlaxoSmithKline Outstanding Clinical Scholar Award ($4,000) – received at the 95th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Cancer Research, Orlando (April, 2004)

BACR Exchange Fellowship (£1,500) – received to support research carried out in laboratory of Dr. David Waxman, Boston University, USA (June – August, 2004)

Research Interests

My main area of research involves the design and coordination of clinical pharmacology studies involving children with cancer. These studies are associated with a wide range of approaches to cancer treatment including the development of novel agents, the optimisation of established therapeutics, the administration of high dose chemotherapy regimens and the treatment of infant patients. Studies are carried out at a national level, in collaboration with the Childrens Cancer and Leukaemia Group (CCLG), involving patients at centres throughout the UK. Over 500 patients have been recruited to studies over the past 10 years and several thousand clinical samples analysed. In addition to these clinical studies, I am involved in laboratory-based molecular and pharmacological research projects relating to mechanism of anticancer drug action.

Other Expertise

Other research interests/expertise include the following :-

- drug combination studies
- drug monitoring
- pharmacogenetic studies
- clinical welfare of children involved in research studies

Current Work

My current research is associated with the work of the Pharmacology Group of the Northern Institute for Cancer Research (NICR). This research involves both clinical pharmacology studies and translational laboratory-based research in the area of paediatric oncology. Ongoing studies are designed to learn more about the key factors which influence the efficacy of currently used and newly-developed drugs or drug formulations for the treatment of children with cancer. For anticancer drugs such as carboplatin, research carried out in the NICR and by other groups has led to approaches to individualised dosing which have now been implemented in standard clinical practic. However, for the vast majority of anticancer drugs used in paediatric oncology, limited clinical pharmacology data is available to dose patients based on any meaningful scientific rationale and there is much work that can be done to optimise treatment. A number of paediatric clinical pharmacology studies are currently open to the recruitment of patients in the UK and Europe, involving the following anticancer drugs:-

- 13-cis-retinoic acid
- actinomycin D
- busulphan
- carboplatin
- cyclophosphamide
- etoposide
- melphalan
- vincristine

In the area of retinoid research, in addition to clinical studies involving 13-cis-retinoic acid, the following laboratory-based projects are currently ongoing :-

- 13-cis-retinoic acid pharmacogenetics
- optimisation of the efficacy of retinoic acid in neuroblastoma
- mechanisms of drug interaction/synergy with novel retinoids

Future Research

Future research will incorporate translational clinical pharmacology and pharmacogenetic studies, increasingly involving international collaborations in order to allow the running of studies large enough to provide statistically meaningful data in a realistic time-frame. Currently the number of patients eligible to participate in clinical pharmacology studies in paediatric oncology is a serious limitation to their design and successful completion. International studies involving the drugs actinomycin D and 13-cis-retinoic acid in children with cancer will be a major focus. A key area in which laboratory-based projects will be developed is the potential for drug combinations with retinoid drugs in neuroblastoma.

Esteem Indicators

Reviewer for the following journals :-

- Clinical Cancer Research
- Molecular Cancer Therapeutics
- British Journal of Cancer
- European Journal of Cancer
- Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology
- Clinical Pharmacokinetics
- Cancer Letters
- Pediatric Blood and Cancer
- British Journal of Pharmacology
- Expert Opinion on Drug Delivery
- Pediatric Hematology and Oncology
- BMC Cancer
- Frontiers in Pediatric Oncology

Funding

Children with Cancer UK
Cancer Research UK
Cancer Research UK Discovery Committee
European Commission Seventh Framework Programme (FP7)
Medical Research Council DPFS
Medical Research Council DTA
Research Councils UK
Sparks Children's Medical Research Charity
Newcastle University Hospitals Special Trustees

Undergraduate Teaching

BSc (Hons) Pharmacology Stage 3
PED 306: Carcinogenesis and anticancer drugs

Postgraduate Teaching

MRes in Medical and Molecular Biosciences (MMS8007: Cancer Studies)

MSc Medical Sciences (MMS8101: Research Practice in the 21st Century; MMS8107: Cancer Studies)

• Veal GJ, Errington J, Rowbotham SE, Illingworth NA, Malik G, Cole M, Daly AK, Pearson ADJ, Boddy AV. Adaptive dosing approaches to the individualization of 13-cis-retinoic acid (isotretinoin) treatment for children with high-risk neuroblastoma. Clinical Cancer Research 2013, 19(2), 469-479.
• Hill CR, Jamieson D, Thomas HD, Brown CDA, Boddy AV, Veal GJ. Characterisation of the roles of ABCB1, ABCC1, ABCC2 and ABCG2 in the transport and pharmacokinetics of actinomycin D in vitro and in vivo. Biochemical Pharmacology 2013, 85(1), 29-37.
• Veal GJ, Nguyen L, Paci A, Riggi M, Amiel M, Valteau-Couanet D, Brock P, Ladenstein R, Vassal G. Busulfan pharmacokinetics following intravenous and oral dosing regimens in children receiving high-dose myeloablative chemotherapy for high-risk neuroblastoma as part of the HR-NBL-1/SIOPEN trial. European Journal of Cancer 2012, 48(16), 3063-3072.
• Veal GJ, Boddy AV. Carboplatin dosing in infants with retinoblastoma: a case for therapeutic drug monitoring. Journal of Clinical Oncology 2012, 30(27), 3424.
• Gomaa MS, Lim AST, Wilson-Lau SC, Watts AM, Illingworth NA, Bridgens CE, Veal GJ, Redfern CPF, Brancale A, Armstrong JL, Simons C. Synthesis and CYP26A1 inhibitory activity of novel methyl 3-[4-(arylamino)phenyl]-3-(azole)-2,2-dimethylpropanoates. Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry 2012, 20(20), 6080-6088.
• Orienti I, Zuccari G, Falconi M, Teti G, Illingworth NA, Veal GJ. Novel micelles based on amphiphilic branched PEG as carriers for fenretinide. Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine 2012, 8(6), 880-890.
• Daly AK, Veal GJ, Jamieson D, Coulthard S. Pharmacogenomics research at Newcastle University. Pharmacogenomics 2012, 13(12), 1333-1338.
• Gomaa MS, Bridgens CE, Illingworth NA, Veal GJ, Redfern CPF, Brancale A, Armstrong JL, Simons C. Novel retinoic acid 4-hydroxylase (CYP26) inhibitors based on a 3-(1H-imidazol- and triazol-1-yl)-2,2-dimethyl-3-(4-(phenylamino)phenyl)propyl scaffold. Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry 2012, 20(14), 4201-4207.
• Veal GJ, Boddy AV. Chemotherapy in newborns and preterm babies. Seminars in Fetal and Neonatal Medicine 2012, 17(4), 243-248.
• Jarvis IWH, Meczes EL, Thomas HD, Edmondson RJ, Veal GJ, Boddy AV, Ottley CJ, Pearson DG, Tilby MJ. Therapy induced carboplatin-DNA adduct levels in human ovarian tumours in relation to assessment of adduct measurement in mouse tumours. Biochemical Pharmacology 2012, 83(1), 69-77.
• Armstrong JL, Martin S, Illingworth NA, Jamieson D, Neilson A, Lovat PE, Redfern CPF, Veal GJ. The impact of retinoic acid treatment on the sensitivity of neuroblastoma cells to fenretinide. Oncology Reports 2012, 27(1), 293-298.
• Gomaa MS, Bridgens CE, Veal GJ, Redfern CPF, Brancale A, Armstrong JL, Simons C. Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of 3-(1H-Imidazol- and Triazol-1-yl)-2,2-dimethyl-3-[4-(naphthalen-2-ylamino)phenyl]propyl Derivatives as Small Molecule Inhibitors of Retinoic Acid 4-Hydroxylase (CYP26). Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2011, 54(19), 6803-6811.
• Illingworth NA, Boddy AV, Daly AK, Veal GJ. Characterisation of the metabolism of fenretinide by human liver microsomes, cytochrome P450 enzymes and UDP-glucuronosyltransferases. British Journal of Pharmacology 2011, 162(4), 989-999.
• Chinnaswamy G, Errington J, Foot A, Boddy AV, Veal GJ, Cole M. Pharmacokinetics of cyclophosphamide and its metabolites in pediatric patients receiving high-dose myeloablative therapy. European Journal of Cancer 2011, 47(10), 1556-1563.
• Gomaa MS, Bridgens CE, Aboraia AS, Veal GJ, Redfern CPF, Brancale A, Armstrong JL, Simons C. Small Molecule Inhibitors of Retinoic Acid 4-Hydroxylase (CYP26): Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Imidazole Methyl 3-(4-(aryl-2-ylamino)phenyl)propanoates. Journal of Medicinal Chemistry 2011, 54(8), 2778-2791.
• Veal GJ, Hartford CM, Stewart CF. Clinical pharmacology in the adolescent oncology patient. Journal of Clinical Oncology 2010, 28(32), 4790-4799.
• Israels T, Damen CWN, Cole M, van Geloven N, Boddy AV, Caron HN, Beijnen JH, Molyneux EM, Veal GJ. Malnourished Malawian patients presenting with large Wilms tumours have a decreased vincristine clearance rate. European Journal of Cancer 2010, 46(10), 1841-1847.
• Rowbotham SE, Boddy AV, Redfern CPF, Veal GJ, Daly AK. Relevance of non-synonymous CYP2C8 polymorphisms to 13-cis retinoic acid and paclitaxel hydroxylation. Drug Metabolism and Disposition 2010, 38(8), 1261-1266.
• Veal GJ, Cole M, Errington J, Pearson ADJ, Gerrard M, Whyman G, Ellershaw C, Boddy AV. Pharmacokinetics of carboplatin and etoposide in infant neuroblastoma patients. Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology 2010, 65(6), 1057-1066.
• Armstrong JL, Flockhart R, Veal GJ, Lovat PE, Redfern CPF. Regulation of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress-induced Cell Death by ATF4 in Neuroectodermal Tumor Cells. Journal of Biological Chemistry 2010, 285(9), 6091-6100.
• Nannizi S, Veal GJ, Giovannetti E, Mey V, Ricciardi S, Ottley CJ, Del Tacca M, Danesi R. Cellular and molecular mechanisms for the synergistic cytotoxicity elicited by oxaliplatin and pemetrexed in colon cancer cell lines. Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology 2010, 66(3), 547-558.
• Rowbotham SE, Illingworth NA, Daly AK, Veal GJ, Boddy AV. Role of UDP-glucuronosyltransferase isoforms in 13-cis retinoic acid metabolism in humans. Drug Metabolism and Disposition 2010, 38(7), 1211-1217.
• Giraud B, Hebert G, Deroussent A, Veal GJ, Vassal G, Paci A. Oxazaphosphorines: New therapeutic strategies for an old class of drugs. Expert Opinion on Drug Metabolism and Toxicology 2010, 6(8), 919-938.
• Picton S, Keeble J, Holden V, Errington J, Boddy AV, Veal GJ. Therapeutic monitoring of carboplatin dosing in a premature infant with retinoblastoma. Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology 2009, 63(4), 749-752.
• Rhodin M, Anderson B, Peters A, Coulthard M, Wilkins B, Cole M, Chatelut E, Grubb A, Veal GJ, Keir M, Holford N. Human renal function maturation: a quantitative description using weight and postmenstrual age. Pediatric Nephrology 2009, 24(1), 67-76.
• Chinnaswamy G, Cole M, Boddy AV, Keir M, Price L, Parry AP, English M, Veal GJ. Estimation of renal function and its potential impact on carboplatin dosing in children with cancer. British Journal of Cancer 2008, 99(6), 894-899.
• Mondick JT, Gibiansky L, Gastonguay MR, Skolnik JM, Cole M, Veal GJ, Boddy AV, Adamson PC, Barrett JS. Population pharmacokinetic investigation of actinomycin D in children and young adults. Journal of Clinical Pharmacology 2008, 48(1), 35-42.
• Gomaa MS, Armstrong JL, Bobillon B, Veal GJ, Brancale A, Redfern CPF, Simons C. Novel azolyl-(phenylmethyl)]aryl/heteroarylamines: Potent CYP26 inhibitors and enhancers of all-trans retinoic acid activity in neuroblastoma cells. Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry 2008, 16(17), 8301-8313.
• Cole M, Price L, Parry AP, Picton S, Waters F, Marshall S, Goran C, Parnham A, Wastell H, Reid M, Pearson ADJ, Boddy AV, Veal GJ. A study to determine the minimum volume of blood necessary to be discarded from a central venous catheter before a valid sample is obtained in children with cancer. Pediatric Blood and Cancer 2007, 48(7), 687-695.
• Veal GJ, Errington J, Tilby MJ, Pearson ADJ, Foot A, McDowell H, Ellershaw C, Pizer B, Nowell G, Pearson D, Boddy AV. Adaptive dosing and platinum-DNA adduct formation in children receiving high-dose carboplatin for the treatment of solid tumours. British Journal of Cancer 2007, 96(5), 725-731.
• Armstrong J, Taylor GA, Thomas HD, Boddy AV, Redfern C, Veal GJ. Molecular targeting of retinoic acid metabolism in neuroblastoma: The role of the CYP26 inhibitor R116010 in vitro and in vivo. British Journal of Cancer 2007, 96(11), 1675-1683.
• Veal GJ, Cole M, Errington J, Pearson ADJ, Foot A, Whyman G, Boddy AV. Pharmacokinetics and metabolism of 13-cis-retinoic acid (isotretinoin) in children with high-risk neuroblastoma - A study of the United Kingdom Children's Cancer Study Group. British Journal of Cancer 2007, 96(3), 424-431.
• Armstrong, J.L., Veal, G.J., Redfern, C.P.F., Lovat, P.E. Role of Noxa in p53-independent fenretinide-induced apoptosis of neuroectodermal tumours. Apoptosis 2007, 12(3), 613-622.
• Veal, G. J., Rowbotham, S., Boddy, A. V. Pharmacokinetics and pharmacogenetics of 13-cis-retinoic acid in the treatment of neuroblastoma. Therapie 2007, 62(2), 91-93.
• Veal GJ, Errington J, Thomas HD, Boddy AV, Lowis S. Biliary excretion of etoposide in children with cancer. Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology 2006, 58(3), 415-417.
• Jounaidi Y, Chen C-S, Veal GJ, Waxman DJ. Enhanced antitumor activity of P450 prodrug-based gene therapy using the low K_m cyclophosphamide 4-hydroxylase P450 2B11. Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 2006, 5(3), 541-555.
• Cole M, Boddy AV, Kearns P, Teh K, Price L, Parry AP, Pearson ADJ, Veal GJ. Potential clinical impact of taking multiple blood samples for research studies in paediatric oncology: How much do we really know?. Pediatric Blood and Cancer 2006, 46(7), 723-727.
• Armstrong, J.L., Redfern, C.P.F., Veal, G.J. 13-cis Retinoic acid and isomerisation in paediatric oncology - Is changing shape the key to success?. Biochemical Pharmacology 2005, 69(9), 1299-1306.
• Armstrong, J., Ruiz, M., Boddy, A. V., Redfern, C., Pearson, A. D. J., Veal, G. J. Increasing the intracellular availability of all-trans retinoic acid in neuroblastoma cells. British Journal of Cancer 2005, 92(4), 696-704.
• Veal, G. J., Cole, M., Errington, J., Parry, A. P., Hale, J. P., Pearson, A. D. J., Howe, K., Chisholm, J., Beane, C., Brennan, B., Waters, F., Glaser, A., Hemsworth, S., McDowell, H., Wright, Y., Pritchard-Jones, K., Pinkerton, R., Jenner, G., Nicholson, J., Elsworth, A., Boddy, A. V. Pharmacokinetics of dactinomycin in a pediatric patient population: A United Kingdom Children's Cancer Study Group study. Clinical Cancer Research 2005, 11(16), 5893-5899.
• Cooper, B., Veal, G.J., Radivoyevitch, T., Tilby, M., Meyerson, H., Lazarus, H., Koc, O., Creger, R., Pearson, G., Nowell, G., Gosky, D., Ingalls, S., Hoppel, C., Gerson, S. A phase I and pharmacodynamic study of fludarabine, carboplatin, and topotecan in patients with relapsed, refractory, or high-risk acute leukemia. Clinical Cancer Research 2004, 10(20), 6830-6839.
• Cole M, Price L, Parry AP, Keir M, Pearson ADJ, Boddy A V, Veal GJ. Estimation of glomerular filtration rate in paediatric cancer patients using ⁵¹CR-EDTA population pharmacokinetics. British Journal of Cancer 2004, 90(1), 60-64.
• Veal, G. J., English, M., Grundy, R., Shakespeare, C., Glaser, A., Waters, F., Holden, V., O'Meara, A., Michalski, A., Howe, K., Cole, S., Boddy, A. V. Pharmacokinetically guided dosing of carboplatin in paediatric cancer patients with bilateral nephrectomy. Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology 2004, 54(4), 295-300.
• Veal, G. J., Coulthard, S., Boddy, A. V. Chemotherapy individualization. Investigational New Drugs 2003, 21(2), 149-156.
• Estlin E, Veal G. Clinical and cellular pharmacology in relation to solid tumours of childhood. Cancer Treatment Reviews 2003, 29(4), 253-273.
• Veal, G. J., Errington, J., Sludden, J., Griffin, M. J., Price, L., Parry, A. P., Hale, J. P., Pearson, A. D. J., Boddy, A. V. Determination of anti-cancer drug actinomycin D in human plasma by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Journal of Chromatography B: Analytical Technologies in the Biomedical and Life Sciences 2003, 795(2), 237-243.
• Veal, G. J., Errington, J., Redfern, C., Pearson, A. D. J., Boddy, A. V. Influence of isomerisation on the growth inhibitory effects and cellular activity of 13-cis and all-trans retinoic acid in neuroblastoma cells. Biochemical Pharmacology 2002, 63(2), 207-215.
• Rana B, Veal GJ, Pearson ADJ, Redfern CPF. Retinoid X receptors and retinoid response in neuroblastoma cells. Journal of Cellular Biochemistry 2002, 86(1), 67-78.
• Veal, G. J., Griffin, M., Price, E., Parry, A. P., Dick, G., Little, M., Yule, S., Morland, B., Estlin, E., Hale, J. P., Pearson, A. D. J., Welbank, H., Boddy, A. V. A phase I study in paediatric patients to evaluate the safety and pharmacokinetics of SPI-77, a liposome encapsulated formulation of cisplatin. British Journal of Cancer 2001, 84(8), 1029-1035.
• Veal, G. J., Dias, C., Price, L., Parry, A. P., Errington, J., Hale, J. P., Pearson, A. D. J., Boddy, A. V., Newell, D. R., Tilby, M. J. Influence of cellular factors and pharmacokinetics on the formation of platinum-DNA adducts in leukocytes of children receiving cisplatin therapy. Clinical Cancer Research 2001, 7(8), 2205-2212.