A cell therapy specialist’s mission to expand access for all

Cell therapy specialist, Asst Prof Sophia Wong, is on a mission to make cancer immunotherapies and cell therapies accessible to all Singaporeans. (Credit: Sophia Wong)

After 21 years of living, studying, and working in the United Kingdom, Assistant Professor Sophia Wong is back in Singapore. The decision to return to the city-state is not just about coming home, but to embark on a new mission: to help make cancer immunotherapies and cell therapies more accessible to all Singaporeans who may need them one day. 

Now based at the National Cancer Centre Singapore (NCCS), Sophia treats patients with lung, head & neck and genitourinary cancers, while leading research in cancer immunology and cell therapy. Sitting at the intersection of clinical care, academic innovation and global collaboration with industries, her work is aimed at ensuring that cutting-edge treatments can be delivered sustainably within local healthcare systems. 

Becoming an oncologist 

Becoming a doctor was always on the cards for Sophia, who grew up watching her father practise as a pathologist. But it was during her medical training in King’s College, London, that she realised that treating patients was truly her calling as helping them improve was deeply rewarding. 

The seeds to specialise in oncology were planted early when she witnessed her childhood friend’s mother, who was diagnosed with late-stage lung cancer, participate in a clinical trial. Access to the novel therapy gave her friend’s mother more time to spend with her family. 

“That experience showed me the power of science in the clinic,” Sophia recalled. “It stayed with me.” 

From that point on, Sophia knew she wanted to pursue a career in cancer care, a field that combines science, compassion and long-term relationships with patients and their families. 

“I enjoy the holistic approach that is required in cancer care and feel privileged to walk alongside patients and their families at some of the most difficult moments of their lives.”

From a PhD to cell therapy specialist 

As part of her medical training in the UK, Sophia pursued a PhD under a Cancer Research UK grant at the University College London to acquire the skills she needed to contribute meaningfully to cancer research. She concentrated on the development of biomarkers and tumour reactive T-cell therapies, using human samples to study immune cells extracted from blood, tumour tissue and urine in bladder, lung, melanoma and kidney cancers. Her work in the role of T cells in bladder cancer won her a prestigious award from the UK’s Association of Cancer Physicians (ACP) – the ACP McElwain Award that recognises high-quality cancer research. 

After completing her medical oncology training, Sophia undertook a fellowship at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London and an observership at The Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI) to develop her cell therapy experience in solid cancer.

Returning to Singapore

Sophia presenting at the ESMO Congress 2024. (Credit: Sophia Wong). 

It was the COVID-19 pandemic that prompted Sophia and her young family to reconsider their long-term plans.  

“We wanted to be closer to our family and contribute back to Singapore,” she shared.  

She considered a number of different institutions before joining NCCS, where she now treats patients in the Department of Lung, Head & Neck and Genitourinary Medical Oncology and does research in the Cancer Therapeutics Research Lab. 

Just 18 months after joining NCCS, Sophia has become the principal investigator of several cell therapy clinical trials, won the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) Innovation 2.0 grant, been selected for the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2-year leadership programme and been awarded the National Medical Research Council’s Transition Award (TA). The TA will support her work in expanding tumour-reactive T cells to create a one-time personalised cell therapy product, with the potential to eradicate cancer entirely for long-term durability. 

Making cell therapy more accessible

Sophia (second from left) visited the Advanced Cell Therapy and Research Institute, Singapore (ACTRIS) in December 2024. Also pictured, ACTRIS’ Sudipto Bari (to Sophia’s right), Netherlands Cancer Institute’s John Haanen, NCCS’ Gopal Iyer and Hong Sheng Quah. (Credit: Sophia Wong)

While cell therapies, such as chimeric antigen receptor T cell (CAR-T), tumour-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) and T-cell receptor (TCR), are often viewed as highly complex, Sophia believes that with the right expertise, training and infrastructure, they can be responsibly developed outside of purely centralised models. 

“Cell therapy has shown us what is scientifically possible,” Sophia said. “The next challenge is ensuring that these advances can reach more patients, in more places, in a sustainable way.” 

Currently, cell therapies are costly and require highly specialised expertise and centralised manufacturing systems to produce. They are commercially available mainly for blood cancers. In solid cancers, only for melanoma and a subtype of soft tissue sarcoma. 

“Expanding access to cell therapies require close collaboration between industry and academic institutions,” explained Sophia. “The shared expertise and knowledge transfer can increase scalability, shorten vein-to-vein times and improve accessibility for patients.” 

Sophia is currently focused on developing cell therapy approaches that can be taught and adapted within academic medical centres. This will complement commercial manufacturing models by enabling therapies to be delivered closer to patients and improve the potential to support regional capacity-building while maintaining rigorous quality and safety standards.

The importance of research 

“Right now, we can prolong life, but we cannot always cure our patients, which is why research remains critical,” said Sophia. 

She is deeply grateful to the patients and their families who participate in research and clinical trials, as well as for the support of donors, endowments and funding bodies. 

“Without their contributions, we would not be where we are today. Every advance we make is built on trust and collaboration,” she said. “There is still so much more to do, but the potential to save lives makes it worth pursuing.”