Prof Toh Han Chong

Dr Toh is Senior Consultant and Deputy Chief Executive Officer (Strategic Partnerships), Division of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore. He graduated from the University of London, UK with an intercalated Bachelor of Science in ‘Infection and Immunity’ from St Mary’s Hospital Medical School and qualified as a medical doctor from University of Cambridge, UK. Dr Toh obtained his Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians in 2003. He received his medical oncology fellowship training at the Singapore General Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston USA, and at the Centre for Cell and Gene Therapy, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA. Dr Toh is alumni at the Harvard Business School General Management Program. He is a recipient of National Senior Clinician Scientist Award in 2017 and National Medical Excellence Award (NMEA) in 2018 and for his pioneering work in cell and immunotherapy for cancer. Dr Toh led the NMRC LCG VICTORY (Virus-Induced Cancers Translational Oncology and immunologY) grant (2018-2024), and is a recipient of Singapore Translational Research (STaR) Investigator Award in 2022 focusing on the translational understanding and therapeutic development for hepato-cellular carcinoma.

Dr Toh is a Professor and College Master at the Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School. He is founder chairman of the Singapore Society of Oncology Cancer Immunotherapy Consortium, co-founder of the Asia Pacific Gastroenterology Cancer Summit (APGCS), and faculty in Cancer Immunology for the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO). Dr Toh has published over 150 peer review journal papers to date.

•  2014 The Academia @ Singhealth SG- GCP Course
•  2013 Harvard Business School 15th General Management Program
•  2003 Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh. – FRCP
•  1994 Membership of the Royal College of Physicians, UK. - MRCP
•  1990 University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, UK. - MBBChir
•  1987 Wright-Fleming Institute, St Mary’s Hospital Medical School, University of London, UK - Intercalated BSc in Infection & Immunity (Upper Second Class Honours)
• 1986 Royal Free Hospital School of Medicine, University of London, UK Preclinical Course

• 2025-Present: Senior Principal Scientist I, Singapore Immunology Network, A*STAR 
• 2024-Present: Senior Principal Scientist III, Institute of Molecular Biology, A*STAR 
• 2024-present: Joint Scientific Committee, Consortium on Harmonization of Institutional Require-ments for Clinical Research (CHAIR) 
• 2024-present: Scientific Advisory Board, iPSCs-differentiated Natural Killer cells for cancer (PANAKEIA)
• 2023-Present: Professor, Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore 
• 2020-Present: Principal Lead, Cellular Immunotherapy, SingHealth Duke-NUS Cell Therapy Centre (SDCTC) 
• 2020-Present: Member, Technical Expert Advisory Board for Cell and Gene Therapy 
• 2019-Present: Council Member, Agency for Care Effectiveness (ACE), Ministry of Health (MOH) 
• 2019-Present: Council, Asia-Pacific Primary Liver Expert (APPLE) 
• 2019-Present: Member and Faculty, European Society of Medical Oncology

• 2022 Singapore Translational Research (STaR) Investigator Award, Singapore 
• 2018 National Outstanding Clinician Scientist Award, National Medical Excellence Award (NMEA), Singapore •
• 2017 Senior Clinician Scientist Award, National Medical Research Council, Singapore 
• 2016 Duke-SingHealth AM-ETHOS Mentoring Award to Duke University Health System 
• 2009 Clinician Scientist Award, National Medical Research Council, Singapore 
• 2008 Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Best Teacher Award (Molecules and Cells)

• Cancer immunology and immunotherapy clinical research on solid cancers, particularly cancers that are more prevalent in Asia such as Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC), Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) and Colorectal Cancer (CRC). 
• Develop novel treatment strategies against HCC, aiming at gaining a deeper understanding of the tumour-immune system interactions, and to design more effective combinations with an immuno-therapy backbone. 
• Translational cancer immunotherapy strategy against virally-driven cancers (VDCs). focusing on EBV, HPV, and HBV/HCV-related cancer.

• PI: A phase Ib clinical trial of surgically resected HCC - following neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment with an anti-PD1 checkpoint inhibitor drug pembrolizumab
• Co-PI: A phase II clinical trial to test the therapeutic efficacy of an autologous cancer-specific neoantigen dendritic cell vaccine (NeoAg-DC) combined with anti-PD1 drug nivolumab in improving the relapse-free survival (RFS) in patients with resected HCC and liver metastases from colorectal cancer (CRLM) patients
• Study Chair and Coordinating PI : A Multicentre, Randomized, Open-Label, Phase III Clinical Trial Of Gemcitabine And Carboplatin Followed By Epstein-Barr Virus-Specific Autologous Cytotoxic T Lymphocytes Versus Gemcitabine And Carboplatin As First Line Treatment For Advanced Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patients (as Tessa Therapeutics Ltd Chief Medical Officer during that trial period)
• Study Chair and co-lead PI : Aspirin for Dukes C and High Risk Dukes B Colorectal Cancers - An International, Multi-Center, Double Blind, Randomized Placebo Controlled Phase III Trial
• PI: First-in-Human Phase I Trial of Ad-sig-hMUC-1/ecdCD40L Vector Vaccine for Immunotherapy of Epithelial Cancers
• PI: Phase II Trial Evaluating Efficacy of a Strategy Employing Combination Gemcitabine and Carboplatin Chemotherapy Followed by EBV-Specific Cytotoxic T-Lymphocytes in Patients With Metastatic or Locally Recurrent EBV-Positive Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma
• Study Chair: Phase II Clinical Trial of Tumour Vaccination By Intradermal Delivery of Autologous Dendritic Cells Transduced With Adenoviral Vector (AD5F35) Expressing Latent Membrane Protein-1 (LMP-1) and Latent Membrane Protein-2 (LMP-2) Genes in Combination With Celecoxib in Patient With Metastatic Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma
• Co-PI: A Phase I Study of Rapamycin in Combination with Bevacizumab in Patients With Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma
• PI: Phase II Allogeneic non-myeloablative conditioning and delayed donor leukocyte infusions (DLI) for HLA matched and 1-antigen mismatched peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT) for chemorefractory nasopharyngeal carcinoma (First-in-Man)
• PI: Prospective phase II clinical trial of vaccination with autologous dendritic cells loaded with lysate of allogenic melanoma cells (MelCancerVac) for treatment of patients with advanced colorectal cancer
• PI (site) Abbott: An open-label, phase 2 study of efficacy and tolerability of ABT-869 in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma
• PI (site) Roche: Modified-dose capecitabine (Xeloda) plus Bevacizumab (Avastin) for the treatment of advanced or metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC): A phase II, single-arm study
• PI (site) CTRG: A phase I/II study of PXD101 in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma with pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic evaluation

• Chong WQ, Low JL, Tay JK, Le TBU, Goh GS, Sooi K, Teo HL, Cheo SW, Wong RT, Samol J, Lim MY, Li H, Shirgaonkar N, Chia S, Wang L, Gopinathan A, Eu DK, Tsang RK, Loh KS, Toh HC, Syn N, Kong LR, Dasgupta R, Tai BC, Lim YC, Goh BC. Pembrolizumab with or without bevacizumab in platinum-resistant recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a randomised, open-label, phase 2 trial. Lancet Oncol. 2025 Feb;26(2):175-186. doi: 10.1016/S1470-2045(24)00677-6. Epub 2025 Jan 15. PMID: 39826567. 
• Chia JWK, Segelov E, Deng Y, Ho GF, Wang W, Han S, Sharma A, Ding K, Chen G, Jeffery MG, Tham CK, Ahn JB, Nott L, Zielinski R, Chao TY, van Hagen T, Wei PL, Day F, Mehta S, Yau T, Peng J, Hayes TM, Li Y, Gandhi M, Foo EMJ, Rahman N, Rothwell P, Ali R, Simes J, Toh HC. Aspirin after completion of standard adjuvant therapy for colorectal cancer (ASCOLT): an international, multicentre, phase 3, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2025 Mar;10(3):198-209. doi: 10.1016/S2468-1253(24)00387-X. Epub 2025 Jan 14. PMID: 39824200. 
• Toh HC, Yang MH, Wang HM, Hsieh CY, Chitapanarux I, Ho KF, Hong RL, Ang MK, Colevas AD, Sira-chainan E, Lertbutsayanukul C, Ho GF, Nadler E, Algazi A, Lulla P, Wirth LJ, Wirasorn K, Liu YC, Ang SF, Low SHJ, Tho LM, Hasbullah HH, Brenner MK, Wang WW, Ong WS, Tan SH, Horak I, Ding C, Myo A, Samol J. Gemcitabine, carboplatin, and Epstein-Barr virus-specific autologous cytotoxic T lym-phocytes for recurrent or metastatic nasopharyngeal carcinoma: VANCE, an international random-ized phase III trial. Ann Oncol. 2024 Sep 4:S0923-7534(24)03923-1. doi: 10.1016/j.annonc.2024.08.2344. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39241963. 
• Chen J, Kaya NA, Zhang Y, Kendarsari RI, Sekar K, Lee Chong S, Seshachalam VP, Ling WH, Jin Phua CZ, Lai H, Yang H, Lu B, Lim JQ, Ma S, Chew SC, Chua KP, Alvarez JJS, Wu L, Ooi L, Chung AY, Cheow PC, Kam JH, Kow AW, Ganpathi IS, Bunchaliew C, Thammasiri J, Koh PS, Ong DB, Lim J, de Villa VH, Dela Cruz RD, Loh TJ, Wan WK, Leow WQ, Yang Y, Liu J, Skanderup AJ, Pang YH, Soon GST, Madhavan K, Lim TK, Bonney G, Goh BKP, Chew V, Dan YY, Toh HC, Foo RS, Tam WL, Zhai W, Chow PK. A multimodal atlas of hepatocellular carcinoma reveals convergent evolutionary paths and 'bad apple' effect on clinical trajectory. J Hepatol. 2024 May 21:S0168-8278(24)00352-0. doi: 10.1016/j.jhep.2024.05.017. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38782118 
• Nasir NJM, Chuah S, Shuen T, Prawira A, Ba R, Lim MC, Chua J, Nguyen PHD, Lim CJ, Wasser M, Hazirah SN, Lim TKH, Leow WQ, Loh TJ, Wan WK, Pang YH, Soon G, Cheow PC, Kam JH, Iyer S, Kow A, Dan YY, Bonney GK, Chung A, Goh BKP, Chow PKH, Albani S, Zhai W, Ouyang JF, Toh HC, Chew V. GATA4 downregulation enhances CCL20-mediated immunosuppression in hepatocellular carcino-ma. Hepatol Commun. 2024 Aug 19;8(9):e0508. doi: 10.1097/HC9.0000000000000508. PMID: 39167427; PMCID: PMC11340929 
• Qin S, Chen M, Cheng AL, Kaseb AO, Kudo M, Lee HC, Yopp AC, Zhou J, Wang L, Wen X, Heo J, Tak WY, Nakamura S, Numata K, Uguen T, Hsiehchen D, Cha E, Hack SP, Lian Q, Ma N, Spahn JH, Wang Y, Wu C, Chow PKH; IMbrave050 investigators including Toh HC. Atezolizumab plus bevacizumab versus active surveillance in patients with resected or ablated high-risk hepatocellular carcinoma (IMbrave050): a randomised, open-label, multicentre, phase 3 trial. Lancet. 2023 Nov 18;402(10415):1835-1847. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01796-8. Epub 2023 Oct 20. PMID: 37871608. 
• Finn RS, Qin S, Ikeda M, Galle PR, Ducreux M, Kim TY, Kudo M, Breder V, Merle P, Kaseb AO, Li D, Verret W, Xu DZ, Hernandez S, Liu J, Huang C, Mulla S, Wang Y, Lim HY, Zhu AX, Cheng AL; IM-brave150 Investigators including Toh HC. Atezolizumab plus Bevacizumab in Unresectable Hepato-cellular Carcinoma. N Engl J Med. 2020 May 14;382(20):1894-1905. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1915745. PMID: 32402160. 
• Zhu AX, Abbas AR, de Galarreta MR, Guan Y, Lu S, Koeppen H, Zhang W, Hsu CH, He AR, Ryoo BY, Yau T, Kaseb AO, Burgoyne AM, Dayyani F, Spahn J, Verret W, Finn RS, Toh HC, Lujambio A, Wang Y. Molecular correlates of clinical response and resistance to atezolizumab in combination with bevacizumab in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. Nat Med. 2022 Aug;28(8):1599-1611. doi: 10.1038/s41591-022-01868-2. Epub 2022 Jun 23. PMID: 35739268. 
• Chia WK, Teo M, Wang WW, Lee B, Ang SF, Tai WM, Chee CL, Ng J, Kan R, Lim WT, Tan SH, Ong WS, Cheung YB, Tan EH, Connolly JE, Gottschalk S, Toh HC. Adoptive T-cell transfer and chemotherapy in the first-line treatment of metastatic and/or locally recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Mol Ther. 2014 Jan;22(1):132-9. doi: 10.1038/mt.2013.242. Epub 2013 Oct 17. PMID: 24297049; PMCID: PMC3978790. 
• Ericksen RE, Lim SL, McDonnell E, Shuen WH, Vadiveloo M, White PJ, Ding Z, Kwok R, Lee P, Radda GK, Toh HC, Hirschey MD, Han W. Loss of BCAA Catabolism during Carcinogenesis Enhances mTORC1 Activity and Promotes Tumor Development and Progression. Cell Metab. 2019 May 7;29(5):1151-1165.e6. doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2018.12.020. Epub 2019 Jan 17. PMID: 30661928; PMCID: PMC6506390. 
• Enane FO, Shuen WH, Gu X, Quteba E, Przychodzen B, Makishima H, Bodo J, Ng J, Chee CL, Ba R, Seng Koh L, Lim J, Cheong R, Teo M, Hu Z, Ng KP, Maciejewski J, Radivoyevitch T, Chung A, Ooi LL, Tan YM, Cheow PC, Chow P, Chan CY, Lim KH, Yerian L, Hsi E, Toh HC^, Saunthararajah Y. GATA4 loss of function in liver cancer impedes precursor to hepatocyte transition. J Clin Invest. 2017 Sep 1;127(9):3527-3542. doi: 10.1172/JCI93488. Epub 2017 Jul 31. PMID: 28758902; PMCID: PMC5669578. (^joint senior and co-corresponding author) 
• Tan TJ, Ang WXG, Wang WW, HS Chong, SH Tan, R Cheong, JWK Chia, NL Syn, WH Shuen, Ba R, N Kaliaperumal, B Au, R Hopkins, X Li, AC Tan,AOL Seet, JE Connolly, T Arkachaisri, V Chew, ABM La-jam, D Guo, MZW Chew, M Wasser, P Kumar, S Albani, Toh HC. A phase I study of an adenoviral vector delivering a MUC1/CD40-ligand fusion protein in patients with advanced adenocarcinoma. Nat Commun 13, JIF6453 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-33834-4 
• Shuen TWH, Alunni-Fabbroni M, Öcal E, Malfertheiner P, Wildgruber M, Schinner R, Pech M, Benckert J, Sangro B, Kuhl C, Gasbarrini A, Chow PKH, Toh HC, Ricke J. Extracellular Vesicles May Predict Response to Radioembolization and Sorafenib Treatment in Advanced Hepatocellular Carci-noma: An Exploratory Analysis from the SORAMIC Trial. Clin Cancer Res. 2022 Sep 1;28(17):3890-3901. doi: 10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-22-0569. PMID: 35763041. 
• Zhai W, Lai H, Kaya NA, Chen J, Yang H, Lu B, Lim JQ, Ma S, Chew SC, Chua KP, Alvarez JJS, Chen PJ, Chang MM, Wu L, Goh BKP, Chung AY, Chan CY, Cheow PC, Lee SY, Kam JH, Kow AW, Ganpathi IS, Chanwat R, Thammasiri J, Yoong BK, Ong DB, de Villa VH, Dela Cruz RD, Loh TJ, Wan WK, Zeng Z, Skanderup AJ, Pang YH, Madhavan K, Lim TK, Bonney G, Leow WQ, Chew V, Dan YY, Tam WL, Toh HC, Foo RS, Chow PK. Dynamic phenotypic heterogeneity and the evolution of multiple RNA sub-types in hepatocellular carcinoma: the PLANET study. Natl Sci Rev. 2021 Oct 29;9(3):nwab192. doi: 10.1093/nsr/nwab192. PMID: 35382356; PMCID: PMC8973408. 
• Hopkins R, Xiang W, Marlier D, Au VB, Ching Q, Wu LX, Guan R, Lee B, Chia WK, Wang WW, Wee J, Ng J, Cheong R, Han S, Chu A, Chee CL, Shuen T, Podinger M, Lezhava A, Toh HC^, Connolly JE. Monocytic Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells Underpin Resistance to Adoptive T Cell Therapy in Na-sopharyngeal Carcinoma. Mol Ther. 2021 Feb 3;29(2):734-743. doi: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2020.09.040. Epub 2020 Sep 30. PMID: 33038324; PMCID: PMC7854281. (^co-corresponding authors)