Cancer Vaccine Program
LICR investigators are designing cancer vaccines that induce immunity against cancer-specific antigens. These vaccines will maintain or reduce tumor size, and will control metastasis, or spread, of cancer cells. In order to successfully vaccinate cancer patients, LICR has also developed sensitive methods to monitor the immune response and also allow vaccine optimization.
Introduction
To be effective, a cancer vaccine must be able to stimulate a robust, sustained, strong, and integrated, both cellular (the CD4+/CD8+ T cell-mediated response that destroys cells) and humoral (the B cell-mediated response to produce antibodies), immunity to cancer antigens. The knowledge of how these immune responses can be induced to fight cancer has been a major area of study within LICR since its inception. Indeed the current world-wide interest in the development of therapeutic cancer vaccines was engendered by the LICR's pioneering work, particularly by Drs. Thierry Boon, Alexander Knuth, and Lloyd J. Old, in the identification and characterization of the first human cancer antigens (Antigen Discovery Program). These findings established the molecular basis for immune recognition of cancer, thus allowing for the rational design and testing of vaccines.
Whilst several cancer vaccines are in late-stage clinical development, very few are used in clinical practice. The currently approved vaccines are comprised of tumor cell-derived components that contain uncharacterized mixtures of potentially immunogenic and immunosuppressive components. Future efforts to improve upon the partial clinical success of these vaccines are likely to be compromised by a limited understanding of the critical components that may activate an immune response against cancer.
The research in the Cancer Vaccine Program can be divided into three main areas:
- Immunosurveillance - the theory of immunosurveillance - the immune system detecting, and eliminating or slowing the progress of cancer - was first suggested many decades ago, but then discounted based on available evidence. With more advanced technology, and better evidence, the concept of immunosurveillance has been resurrected and extended.
- Vaccine Composition - To create a safe and effective therapeutic cancer vaccine, LICR is investigating systematically vaccine variables: antigens, ‘adjuvants’ (compounds that increase the immune response to the antigen), and the method, frequency and intensity of antigen delivery.
- Characterization of the Human Immune Response - Careful and systematic monitoring of the response to vaccination is the only way to measure the success or failure of immunization, and allow for the optimization of the treatment strategy, i.e. validation of the antigen/s as a target, the antigen composition, and the method and duration of the vaccine's delivery. Meaningful evaluation of a human cancer vaccine, to determine safety and induction of specific immunity, is only possible in a human setting.
Centers Involved in this Research
Click here to download a PDF brochure describing the Cancer Vaccine Collaborative, a global enterprise from the Cancer Research Institute and the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research. (PDF, 334kb)