December 1999 issue of Internal Medicine World
(thanks j)
on page 20, there is a commentary by John Schieszer, a journalist based in Seattle under
his "Medical Minutes" about "BREAST CANCER VACCINE TRIAL
ADVANCING"
" Several breast cancer vaccine products are showing promise, and some may
soon become available even to newly diagnosed early-stage patients.
Internist should know what is available for their patients with breast cancer so
they may contact those who may be candidates for these trials, said Joan
Mortimer, MD, professor of medicine at Washington University School of
Medicine in St. Louis.
Dr. Mortimer is one of the investigators participating in a phase 3 breast
cancer vaccine trial with 950 patients at selected sites in Europe and North
America. The trial includes patients with metastatic breast cancer and is the
largest vaccine study of its kind. Results will determine whether Theratope
vaccine can delay disease progression and increase survival in a large
population.
In 1996, a phase 2 trial showed that patients treated with Theratope vaccine
had a median survival rate of 26.5 months compared with 9.2 months for
matched patients in a retrospective control group.
The Theratope vaccine includes a synthetic antigen that mimics natural ST-n,
a cancer associated epitope, the expression of which is associated with disease
aggression. It is conjugated to a high-molecular-weight protein carrier,
Keyhole Limpet Hemocyanin (KNH). The improved survival observed in some
patients is associated with the strength of the immune response to ST-n.
With this vaccine product, four subcutaneous injections are given at weeks
0,2,5 and 9. " We are definitely in a new era. There is reason for cautious
optimism" according to Dr. Mortimer. "The most exciting thing is that we are
targeting the mechanism of the disease process and minimizing the toxicity of
chemotherapy agents."
For now the experimental breast cancer vaccines are being tested in women
with advanced disease, but it is expected that these vaccine products will soon
be moved into trials with women who are newly diagnosed with early-stage
disease."
And of course there was no mention that the new vaccine is 100 times more
potent or that Theratope could also be used for other cancers like prostate and
colon, or that BIOM has other kinds of vaccines just or more promising than
Theratope. |
