# Dean A. Fennell

Source: https://onco.cc/people/dean-fennell/  
OnCo record `dean-fennell` (Person). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Led CONFIRM and MARS 2, which showed nivolumab helps relapsed mesothelioma and that radical surgery does not.

## Summary

Dean Fennell (University of Leicester) was chief investigator of CONFIRM, the first placebo-controlled trial to show a survival benefit for a checkpoint inhibitor (nivolumab) in relapsed mesothelioma, and of MARS 2, which showed extended pleurectomy decortication worsens survival and quality of life compared with chemotherapy alone, ending routine radical surgery. He leads the MEDUSA mesothelioma evolution programme.

## Fields

- Kind: Person
- Last checked: 2026-09-10
- Tags: mesothelioma; immunotherapy; surgery; uk
- Role: Professor of Thoracic Medical Oncology, University of Leicester
- Specialisms: Mesothelioma; Immunotherapy; Surgical trials; Tumour evolution

## Sources

- PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=Fennell%20DA%5BAuthor%5D%20mesothelioma

## Connected records

- cancers: [Mesothelioma](https://onco.cc/cancers/mesothelioma/)
- technologies: [Immune checkpoint inhibitors](https://onco.cc/technologies/checkpoint-inhibitor/)
- targets: [PD-1](https://onco.cc/targets/pd1/)
- drugs: [Nivolumab](https://onco.cc/drugs/nivolumab/)
- institutions: [Leicester Cancer Research Centre / University Hospitals of Leicester](https://onco.cc/institutions/leicester-cancer-research-centre/)
- trials: [MARS 2](https://onco.cc/trials/mars-2/)

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