Brain Tumor Vaccine Shows Promise in Trials
- By BSTQ Staff
A vaccine that jump-starts the immune system is showing promise in keeping patients diagnosed with glioblastoma, or malignant glioma, alive longer. Glioblastoma is the most common type of cancerous brain tumor, and those diagnosed die approximately 12 to 14 months after diagnosis.
In a Phase I clinical trial, researchers created individual vaccines for 34 patients using brain tumor tissue and each patient’s own dendritic cells, which are part of the immune system. Ninety-one percent of patients who received the vaccine were alive after one year, 55 percent were alive after two years, and 44 percent survived three years or longer. Three patients are still alive after five years. According to the researchers, combining tumor tissue with the dendritic cells trains the immune system to recognize cancer cells and mount an attack.
The Phase I clinical results were reported in April at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons meeting in Denver. A Phase II clinical trial is currently being finished, and a Phase III multicenter trial is currently enrolling patients.