Professional background

After qualifying in medicine and surgery in 1986, Professor Bridgewater specialised in medical oncology at the Middlesex, Mount Vernon and Royal Marsden Hospitals. He undertook a PhD in gene therapy at the Institute of Cancer Research, and subsequently took a senior lecturer position in medical oncology at UCL in 1999.

Professor Bridgewater leads the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) Study Group upper gastrointestinal malignancy, focusing on clinical and translational research. He has contributed to landmark studies in gastrointestinal (GI) malignancy and is chief and co-chief investigator on a number of lead studies in the NCRI upper GI research portfolio. He is senior author on the BILCAP and ABC-02 studies that have defined the management of biliary tract cancer in the adjuvant and advanced settings respectively. He was a lead investigator on the new EPOC study and has helped develop the portfolios of the colorectal and pancreatic subgroups.

Professor Bridgewater serves on several research committees including the Clinical Trials Advisory and Awards Committee, and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence committee.

Research interests

Professor Bridgewater specialises in gastrointestinal oncology, with a particular interest in biliary tract cancers and carcinomas of unknown primary origin. He leads the National Cancer Research Institute subgroup in bilary tract malignancy and is actively involved in the research portfolio. He is also active in trials across the gastrointestinal portfolio and is a member of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer. He has a laboratory programme investigation Carcinoma of Unknown Primary based at the UCL Cancer Institute.

Languages spoken

French, Cantonese

Publications

Selected publications:

  • Primrose JN, Fox RP, Palmer DH, et al. Capecitabine compared with observation in resected biliary tract cancer (BILCAP): a randomised, controlled, multicentre, phase 3 study. Lancet Oncol 2019.
  • Lamarca A, Palmer DH, Wasan HS, et al. ABC-06: A randomised phase III, multi-centre, open-label study of active symptom control alone or active symptom control with oxaliplatin/5-FU chemotherapy for patients with locally advanced/metastatic biliary tract cancers previously-treated with cisplatin/gemcitabine chemotherapy. Journal of Clinical Oncology 2019;37:4003-.
  • Valle J, Wasan H, Palmer DH, et al. Cisplatin plus Gemcitabine versus Gemcitabine for Biliary Tract Cancer. N Engl J Med 2010;362:1273-81.
  • Abou-Alfa GK, Macarulla T, Javle MM, et al. Ivosidenib in IDH1-mutant, chemotherapy-refractory cholangiocarcinoma (ClarIDHy): a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 study. The Lancet Oncology 2020;21:796-807.
  • Goyal L, Meric-Bernstam F, Hollebecque A, et al. FOENIX-CCA2: A phase II, open-label, multicenter study of futibatinib in patients (pts) with intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (iCCA) harboring FGFR2 gene fusions or other rearrangements. Journal of Clinical Oncology 2020;38:108-.
  • Valle JW, Wasan H, Johnson P, et al. Gemcitabine alone or in combination with cisplatin in patients with advanced or metastatic cholangiocarcinomas or other biliary tract tumours: a multicentre randomised phase II study - The UK ABC-01 Study. Br J Cancer 2009;101:621-7.
  • Valle JW, Wasan H, Lopes A, et al. Cediranib or placebo in combination with cisplatin and gemcitabine chemotherapy for patients with advanced biliary tract cancer (ABC-03): a randomised phase 2 trial. Lancet Oncol 2015;16:967-78.
  • Bridgewater J, Lopes A, Beare S, et al. A phase 1b study of Selumetinib in combination with Cisplatin and Gemcitabine in advanced or metastatic biliary tract cancer: the ABC-04 study. BMC Cancer 2016;16:153.
  • McNamara MG, Bridgewater JA, Palmer DH, et al. ABC-08: A phase Ib, multi-centre, open-label study of a first-in-class nucleotide analogue NUC-1031 in combination with cisplatin in patients with locally advanced/metastatic biliary tract cancers. Journal of Clinical Oncology 2018;36:TPS544-TPS.
  • Bridgewater J, Galle PR, Khan SA, et al. Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. J Hepatol 2014;60:1268-89.
  • Pereira SP, Jitlal M, Duggan M, et al. PHOTOSTENT-02: porfimer sodium photodynamic therapy plus stenting versus stenting alone in patients with locally advanced or metastatic biliary tract cancer. ESMO open 2018;3:e000379-e.
  • Andre T, Boni C, Mounedji-Boudiaf L, et al. Oxaliplatin, Fluorouracil, and Leucovorin as Adjuvant Treatment for Colon Cancer. N Engl J Med 2004;350:2343-51.
  • Bridgewater JA, Pugh SA, Maishman T, et al. Systemic chemotherapy with or without cetuximab in patients with resectable colorectal liver metastasis (New EPOC): long-term results of a multicentre, randomised, controlled, phase 3 trial. The Lancet Oncology 2020:S1470-2045(19)30798-3.
  • Iveson TJ, Kerr RS, Saunders MP, et al. 3 versus 6 months of adjuvant oxaliplatin-fluoropyrimidine combination therapy for colorectal cancer (SCOT): an international, randomised, phase 3, non-inferiority trial. The Lancet Oncology 2018;19:562-78.
  • Maughan TS, Adams RA, Smith CG, et al. Addition of cetuximab to oxaliplatin-based first-line combination chemotherapy for treatment of advanced colorectal cancer: results of the randomised phase 3 MRC COIN trial. Lancet 2011;377:2103-14.
  • Fernandez AF, Assenov Y, Martin-Subero JI, et al. A DNA methylation fingerprint of 1628 human samples. Genome Research 2012;22:407-19.
  • Taieb J, Tabernero J, Mini E, et al. Oxaliplatin, fluorouracil, and leucovorin with or without cetuximab in patients with resected stage III colon cancer (PETACC-8): an open-label, randomised phase 3 trial. The Lancet Oncology 2014.