CF LIVE on phage therapy
In June 2025 Cystic Fibrosis Trust ran a webinar for the CF community on bacteriophages, to explain some key concepts about using bacteriophages as a treatment for CF lung infections and to answer questions from the CF community. We’ve summarised some of the key discussion points, and highlighted where this information is available within the recording of the event.
Our panel
Our panel included Professor Jo Fothergill, Professor in Medical Microbiology at the University of Liverpool, Dr Phil Mitchelmore, adult CF clinician and researcher at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital and Dr Antonia Scobia, Consultant in Infectious Diseases and Microbiology at the Royal Free Hospital in London.
Find out more about their interest in bacteriophages
Following an audience poll, each panelist was asked to talk about the following topics. Expand the sections to find out more and listen to that section of the recording.
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True or false – bacteriophage are viruses
Phage are viruses, but they’re actually a slightly different type of virus, because they’re viruses that infect bacteria. They can’t infect human cells at all. They can only infect bacteria
Prof Jo Fothergill explained what bacteriophages are and how their activity makes them a useful as a medicine. She also discusses some of the possible benefits of using bacteriophages as a treatment, and some of the drawbacks.
Listen to this section of the recording (about 7 minutes long)
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True or false – phage treatments are better than antibiotics
Dr Phil Mitchelmore compared and contrasted antibiotic treatments for infections versus what we know so far about phage treatments. He talked about safety and side effects, treatment burden and compared how the two different types of treatment work. Dr Mitchelmore also talked about how using antibiotics and phage together might be an effective treatment strategy in the future.
In comparison to antibiotics, phages may be safer and they may increase the treatment burden to start with. Rather than being better or worse than antibiotics in how they work, using antibiotic and phage together may be the ultimate combination for success
Listen to this section of the recording (about 8 minutes long)
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True or false – you can get phage treatments in the UK
At the time of the event in June 2025, Dr Antonia Scobie estimated that around 15 people across all areas of medicine may have been treated with phage therapy so far in the UK. But these treatments are not licenced, so it requires a lot of discussion with medicine regulators and the hospitals where the treatment will take place to show they are as safe as they can be.
Dr Scobie discusses why clinical trials are difficult to do and why the practicalities of making phages to use as phage therapy are difficult.
Phages are not a new concept or an experimental drug, but what we don’t have are the data from clinical trials to prove where they will work and who they will work best for. That’s something we really need to push for
Listen to this section of the recording (about 6 minutes long)
Q&A session on phage therapies
Listen to the answers to the following questions during the Question and Answer section of the discussion. The answers to each question lasts between 2 and 5 minutes.
Will phage therapies always need to be off-licence?
What can we learn from phage therapies given in other parts of the world?
How might phage therapy trials be run and who might be able to take part?
What might be the practicalities of receiving a phage therapy?
How would a phage therapy be removed from the body after treatment?