Manchester research contributes to ground-breaking peanut allergy treatment for children

Children in the UK will be able to receive a new life-changing oral treatment for peanut allergies following approval for use by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

NICE approved Palforzia after two large clinical trials into peanut allergy.

Much of this study was carried out in Manchester, including at the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), Manchester Clinical Research Facility (CRF) at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital (RMCH).

The aim of the study - called the Palisade study - was to assess if taking small doses of Palforzia (which contains peanut in the form of peanut powder), and increasing the dose over time, could help patients with peanut allergy slowly build up tolerance to peanuts.

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The study demonstrated that children with peanut allergy treated with Palforzia experienced desensitization to peanut.

Peanut allergy is a common and serious condition that is associated with severe side-effects, including anaphylaxis – a severe, potentially life-threatening allergic reaction affecting one in 50 children in the UK, and is one of the most common causes of food-related deaths.

Approximately 80 per cent of people remain allergic to peanuts as adults.

Peanut allergy is usually treated with strict avoidance of foods containing peanut, in conjunction with the timely use of rescue medications including adrenaline for severe reactions.

Manufactured by Aimmune Therapeutics, Palforzia is an oral treatment that aims to provide children with a severe allergy, with some tolerance to peanut protein.

This is with the intention to avert accidental exposures of small amounts of peanut leading to severe