Sarawak General Hospital Achieves Milestone in First in Human Clinical Trials

KUCHING, Oct 10 – Sarawak General Hospital (SGH), together with its Clinical Research Centre (CRC) celebrated a series of significant milestones in early phase clinical research, positioning itself as a key player in the global First-in-Human (FIH) clinical trial landscape. These achievements highlighted SGH’s growing reputation as a regional contender in early phase research and its excellent delivery of international sponsored studies.

Among the most recent accomplishments was the successful enrolment of the first patient in the Asia Pacific region for a new treatment in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), an autoimmune condition that affects joints, skin, brain, lungs, kidneys, and blood vessels. The industry-sponsored FIH clinical trial was led by SGH’s Consultant Rheumatologist, Dr Teh Cheng Lay.

Sarawak General Hospital was the first centre in Malaysia to have conducted a FIH clinical trial.  In 2023, SGH conducted a first-in-class FIH clinical trial for patients with advanced solid tumours, led by Dr Voon Pei Jye, Consultant Medical Oncologist.  Findings from this study were featured in the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference at Boston whereby Dr Voon became the first Malaysian to co-author a FIH global multicentre clinical trial, placing Malaysia alongside world top-ranking cancer institutes. Subsequently, a groundbreaking FIH study for advanced solid tumours was conducted, again led by Dr Voon. The study marked a historic moment earlier this July, having successfully enrolled the first patient in Malaysia.

Sarawak General Hospital’s early phase accomplishments began as early as 2021, with its Consultant Haematologist, Dr Chew Lee Ping being named the first Global Recruiter for a First-in-Patient study. Since then, the nation’s early phase clinical research capabilities have been running strong. Much of this is owed through Clinical Research Malaysia’s Phase 1 Realisation Project which enabled the nation’s early phase ecosystem from the establishment of guidelines to human capability development, as well as the establishment of the Phase 1 facility in CRC SGH.

Three more upcoming FIH oncology studies from global multinational pharmaceuticals are slated for SGH, focused on treatments for solid tumours, non-small cell lung cancer and prostate cancer. With many accomplishments under its belt, Sarawak General Hospital remains to be among the nation’s top clinical research site that have significantly contributed to the global advancement of therapeutics.