University of Cincinnati oncologists are involved in one of the largest international cancer vaccine clinical trials to date aimed at reducing recurrence and improving life expectancy among early-stage lung cancer survivors. Led locally by Dr. Apurva Mehta, the trial is expected to enroll a total of 2,300 patients through 100 centers in the United States and 400 globally. This vaccine trial, sponsored internationally by GlaxoSmithKline, targets a protein that is found in 35 percent of all lung cancers and thought to play a role in cancer recurrence. Studies have shown a possible link between the protein, called MAGE-A3, and shorter survival in cancer patients. Scientists hope that by administering a vaccine, they can train the immune system to recognize and kill residual cancer cells that represent an increased risk for future disease.
"Chemotherapy given after surgery decreases the recurrence by 5 to 15 percent. Clearly, more needs to be done to prevent the cancer from recurring," Mehta says. "This trial employs the help of the patient’s own immune system to ‘mop off’ the microscopic cancer cells that remain in the body."
The UC Barrett Cancer Center at University Hospital is one of two clinical testing sites currently enrolling patients for the trial in Ohio and the only one in Greater Cincinnati. The Barrett Cancer Center is part of a joint cancer program involving the UC College of Medicine, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and University Hospital.
Writer: David Holthaus
Source: Amanda Harper, University of Cincinnati
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